


Here's What (Really) Happened

by ArabellaTurner



Category: Broadway Whodunit, Broadway Whodunit - All Hallows' Eve
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Batman is a shitty detective, Brotherly Love, F/M, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Post-Canon Fix-It, Self-Hatred, Verbal Abuse, or whatever counts as canon in Broadway Whodunit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-03
Updated: 2021-01-03
Packaged: 2021-03-13 11:33:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 22,218
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28527780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArabellaTurner/pseuds/ArabellaTurner
Summary: We all know how the mystery ends. The detective shows up, investigates the case, explains what really happened, then the killer is sent to jail. But what if the detective got it wrong?When Albert Justice learns about Jeff O'Ween's arrest, he is certain that there has been a mistake. His friend is not a murderer, he simply isn't. He is determined to get to the true bottom of this murder mystery and prove once and for all that his friend is innocent, but things are not always that easy. Especially when Jeff himself isn't so sure he wants to be exonerated.
Relationships: Albert Justice/Giuseppe Romano, Jeff O'Ween and Hal O'Ween, Jeff O'Ween/Elizabeth O'Ween-McKinley, Teddy Carmichael/Giuseppe Romano
Comments: 23
Kudos: 5





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> It's finally done! That was quite the journey but here we are! This was meant to be a short story just explaining a theory my friends and I had about All Hallows' Eve, but clearly it evolved into something much larger (and with a lot more Albert Justice). I apologize if either the canon or the legal elements here are not perfect. I did a lot of research, but when dealing with an improv-based, supernatural murder where Batman is the detective, I don't think I'm ever going to be able to get it completely logic-based. Hopefully nothing is too jarringly inaccurate though!  
>    
> I won't lie. The relationship between Jeff and Lizzie is one of the main reasons why I wrote this. I just couldn't stand the idea of her getting everything she wanted after being such a horrible person. Especially when it seemed like Batman didn't actually consider all the evidence. So if you're like me and you want to see some justice for Jeff O'Ween, I hope you enjoy this fic!  
>   
>  **Trigger Warnings:  
>  This fic focuses very heavily on Jeff and Lizzie's relationship and does not stray away from the abuse. There is nothing physical, but Lizzie is highly manipulative, insulting, and overall cruel. I also delve a bit into the negative effects this has on Jeff, so expect some amount of self-doubt, self-hatred, and (self) victim-blaming. This is also still a murder mystery fic, so obvious warnings for (non-graphic) discussion of murder. If there is anything I missed here, please let me know in the comments so I can add it here and in the tags. __**  
> 

Jeff looked miserably around the holding cell. It was tiny, dirty and smelled funny. Earlier that day, there were others in there with him, but Jeff was alone now. He didn’t really mind that though. He felt so stupid and helpless. Nothing at all like the cool guy he so desperately wanted to be. At least not in a millionaire sort of way. Maybe in a tough guy sort of way, but Jeff wasn’t sure he really wanted to be a tough guy.

For a brief moment, he wondered if maybe Lizzie would prefer him as a tough guy. But then he remembered why he was here in the first place. And sure, he had stolen money from his brother. And yes, he knew it was wrong. But Hal just didn’t seem to have any idea what to do with his money! He spent it on all that stupid, spooky shit and it was so pointless and weird.

But maybe it wasn’t so pointless after all. Hal was happy, wasn’t he? He loved what he did and he was loved for doing it. His financial success was proof of that. Was it really so bad that it wasn’t cool at all?

Jeff tugged miserably at his sleeve. Normally he would play with his sunglasses, but right now they were sitting in a box somewhere in the police station along with the rest of his belongings. He wasn’t sure yet who he would ask to go get them. Hal would have been his go to, but that didn’t seem possible now. Heinz would have been his next choice, but, well… Bella and Ezra seemed pretty out now too.

He wasn’t sure if Lizzie had ever been an option. Sure, he constantly told himself that there was love there somewhere, but did he ever actually believe it? He certainly didn’t believe it now. Not after the way she just sat there watching his life fall apart. She looked so bored, so disinterested, like she was a few seconds away from falling asleep. And that was after she went around telling people that he was the murder.

But that was it wasn’t it? That was why he didn’t protest further. What was the point? His wife hated him, his brother now hated him, he had no more money, and Heinz was straight up dead. What did it really matter if he tried to defend himself?

He highly doubted that Heinz was out there somewhere trying to seek vengeance for his murder. Besides, maybe Heinz would be happy to see him all locked up like this after the money thing went so far.

Jeff honestly hadn’t meant to take it as far as he did. He always planned on paying Hal back. He just needed to make one good investment. Just one smart move to get the money rolling back in. And he knew he shouldn’t have spent it so liberally, but he just wanted people to like him so badly. And nobody ever really seemed to without the money. Besides Hal, he supposed. But not anymore.

Jeff’s mind drifted back to the betrayed faces of his brother and friends and the stone cold one of his wife. Lizzie’s face rarely transformed to anything besides boredom, annoyance, or hatred, but Jeff had to admit that boredom was not really the reaction he expected from her here.

Of course, there was a logical reason for it, but Jeff didn’t want to think about that. He couldn’t think about that. It simply hurt too much. Besides, even if it was true, what was he going to do about it? He loved Lizzie and he wasn’t about to hurt her. Even if she seemed to want nothing more than to hurt him in return.

Jeff curled himself up into a ball and held on tight, trying desperately to stop the burning ache in his heart. It didn’t really work, but once his face was buried in his knees, he couldn’t imagine ever looking up again.

═══════════════

_ It was a cold and rainy day the first time Albert met Jeff. After finishing his own work, Albert settled himself in Giuseppe’s waiting room to wait for his boyfriend to do the same. He had intended on taking the other man out to eat that night, but things had not exactly gone as planned. _

_ Around 20 minutes into his wait, Albert was startled from his phone by the sound of someone throwing the door open. The someone in question was dripping wet from the rain and holding an envelope full of papers close to his chest. _

_ The man’s eyes flickered with worry when they settled onto Albert. “I didn’t think anyone else would be here so late, you know?” the man admitted. He had a high pitched, nervous voice and a slight fidget to his stance. He shook the water out of his hair. _

_ “Did you have an appointment?” Albert asked, almost certain the answer was no. “Of course I have an appointment!” the other man objected, his voice squeaking in indignation. “What sort of, of rich and successful businessman wouldn’t?”  _

_ “Oh?” Albert asked, cocking his head to study the other man further. Despite his somewhat bedraggled look, his clothes did all appear to be expensive and well made. The sort of look that went more with ‘eccentric’ than it did with ‘weird’ and one that Albert had to admit he was intimately familiar with. _

_ He dressed and lived more simply now, but Albert did sometimes miss his style of old. Not that he would ever go back to that life. There were a lot of reasons why he and Giuseppe chose to abandon it and instead to try to make it in the world as a lawyer and detective proper.  _

_ And Albert had to admit that the fight for justice truly was a lot more invigorating than running headfirst into a world of robot servitude and all of the issues that came with it. Doing good really did feel incredibly good. _

_ “My apologies,” Albert conceded. He pulled out his phone to text Giuseppe, figuring he should probably give up on the dinner plans and offer to grab takeout instead, but only got a few words in. _

_ “Jeff O’Ween?” Giuseppe inquired, stepping out of his office and into his waiting room. The wet man nodded vigorously. “Albert?” Giuseppe then asked in surprise. _

_ “Hey Giù,” Albert said. “I just stopped by to grab you for dinner, but it looks like you’re still busy.”  _

_ “Sorry,” Giuseppe apologized. “I got an appointment request today that I simply couldn’t turn down.” _

_ “I need to change my will,” the man, Jeff, spoke up. “I have a lot of money, you know, and wanna leave it with someone I trust. Right now, it mostly goes to my wife. And I, like, love my wife a lot. But I, I fear that if I, if I don’t… if I, like…” Jeff swallowed and took a deep breath. “I fear that if I don’t change my will,” he finally forced out, “one day my wife’ll up and kill me.” _

═══════════════

Albert didn’t think he would ever forget the fear in Jeff’s eyes as he spoke about his wife potentially killing him. And he would never understand Jeff’s insistence that changing the will would remove the temptation and help fix his relationship with his wife. But it was what Jeff truly believed and all Albert could do was hope it worked.

Only now it seemed that didn’t matter. Sure, Jeff was still alive, but this just didn’t make any sense. “Self Proclaimed Bowling Magnate Charged in Murder Case,” he read aloud. It was there, plain as day on the front page of the local newspaper. No matter how much he thought about it, only one person came to mind. 

“Huh?” Giuseppe asked from the other side of the kitchen. He looked up from the pan of eggs he had been attempting to scramble. 

“Jeff O’Ween has been charged with murder,” Albert replied in horror. Giuseppe’s eyes widened. “Did he do it?” he asked. “No,” Albert replied firmly. 

“You know who did?” Giuseppe asked. “No,” Albert replied again. “Then ho-“ Giuseppe began, but Albert cut him off. 

“Jeff is innocent. I just know he is! And now he’s going to go to jail for a crime he didn’t commit!” Albert cried.

Giuseppe gave Albert a pointed look, causing Albert to look away for a moment. “That’s different Giù,” he protested. “Jeff is a good person! Besides, he’s our friend. We can’t just leave him!”

Giuseppe turned back to the now-burning eggs, scraping them off the pan and onto two plates. He handed one to Albert and sat down to eat his own. The couple lapsed into a tense silence, broken only by the occasional scrape of fork on plate.

But after a few minutes of picking at his eggs, Albert slammed his fork down to the table and stood up. “Please Giù,” he pleaded. “I know I wasn’t a real detective back then, but I am one now. I can do this. I won’t let our past get muddled into this. I just want justice for my friend.”

Giuseppe finally looked up to face his lover. “I know, Albert,” he said slowly. “And I believe in you. I just don’t want you to get hurt.”

“I know, Giù,” Albert admitted. “But he didn’t even call me up for help. I found out from the newspaper. What sort of detective finds out about his friend’s arrest from the news? I know it’s dangerous to go sticking my head where it doesn’t belong, but I just can’t bear to think of him locked up and alone like this.”

Giuseppe sighed and moved to stand next to his boyfriend. “Well, I guess if he’s in legal trouble, then he’s going to need a lawyer too, right?” he relented.

“Really?” Albert asked, his face lighting up. “Really,” Giuseppe agreed. He smiled softly at Albert’s overjoyed look. “Just keep any mentions of the Montgomery’s out of this. Okay, Teddy Bear?” 

“Okay, Giù,” Albert agreed. He pulled his cellphone out of his pocket and began to dial. Some way or another, he was going to make sure that Jeff got out of this unscathed.

═══════════════

At first Jeff thought his mind was playing tricks on him. There was no way that Heinz had just said his name, was there? Sure, apparently ghosts were real or something, but even at Hal’s party they hadn’t seemed able to talk without possessing someone.

Yet when Jeff lifted his face from his knees, he did a double take. “Heinz?” he yelped out in horror. He stared at the man standing before him. Was he really being haunted? Was this all some sort of twisted punishment? Was Heinz mad at Jeff for what he had done? For what he hadn’t done? Was he about to die?

“I-I’m s-s-sor-“ Jeff tried to force out, the words getting caught in his throat. He stared desperately at the other man. If he was going to do something to him, why not just do it already?

“Jeff,” the man repeated, his voice sorrowful. He made a small step towards Jeff’s cell, his hands raised in what appeared to be a reassuring gesture.

Jeff shrank back a little, his fear of death still apparently stronger than his acceptance of his fate. The other man stopped moving when he saw Jeff react, his face twisted in concern.

Now that the threat no longer seemed imminent, Jeff forced himself to stare fully at the other man. The resemblance to Heinz was undeniable, but his clothes were more formal than anything Jeff had ever seen him wear. And while his face was very similar, the man standing before Jeff was clean shaven with his hair slicked back. 

“I’m here to help,” the man said gently. Jeff had never been sure what Heinz’s accent was supposed to be but Jeff was almost certain that it wasn’t quite this Italian.

“Giuseppe,” Jeff finally realized, recognition of his friend breaking through his veil of fear. Relief sank deep through his bones at the realization that he wasn’t being haunted. A second later, a second man and a guard approached Jeff’s cell as well. 

“Albert!” he cried, now certain he wasn’t imagining things.

“What on earth happened here?” Albert asked. He gave Jeff a pitying once over.

“It’s a… it’s a long story, you know?” Jeff replied, suddenly unsure whether this was actually better than being haunted. Sure, he wasn’t about to die, but why on earth were these two here right now?

“That’s fine,” Albert assured him gently. “You don’t have to tell us everything now. But we’re here for you, okay Jeff? We’re going to prove your innocence.”

Jeff’s eyes widened in surprise. He had written off everyone who he thought might have any interest in coming here to help him, yet here were Albert and Giuseppe. He wasn’t super surprised that the news of his arrest had spread, but he wasn’t sure why anyone would go out of their way to help him like this. Unless…

“I don’t have enough money to pay you,” Jeff apologized. He averted his eyes once more. “It’s all over now, okay? The truth is out there and there’s no… no way to recover from it.”

Jeff pulled his knees back into his chest and hugged himself tightly. “Besides, even if I had the money somewhere, what’s the point, you know? Hal knows everything now. He’s never going to want to talk to me again. And Lizzie… Lizzie, she… she…” Jeff broke down into tears. 

“Even if I, if I somehow get out of here, what’s left for me? Nobody’s gonna to want me around after this and I don’t… don’t have enough money to, like, start over, you know? It’s all over now. If I’m found guilty, then I’m found guilty. Please, I’m all out of hope right now, okay? Go find a worthier client to defend.”

Albert stared for a moment as Jeff sobbed deeply into his knees. He opened and closed his mouth a few times as he searched for the words to say. Eventually he felt a gentle hand press against his shoulder. “This isn’t over,” he swore, more to himself than Jeff. He felt Giuseppe’s hand tighten slightly. “We’re not giving up on you.”


	2. Chapter 2

_ Albert took a second to congratulate himself as the pins toppled to the ground. He was not a particularly good bowler, so spares like this were rare and worth celebrating. He turned back to Jeff to see him cheering as well.  _

_ Jeff was not a particularly good bowler either, but that never seemed to dampen his enthusiasm for the game. Every time the pair met up for their monthly outing, Jeff seemed to have some new bowling accoutrement. This month it was a new pair of custom shoes. _

_ “You sure I can’t snatch you up for my team?” Jeff asked as Albert returned to his seat.  _

_ “I’m afraid not,” Albert apologized with a laugh. “I like my job too much to be looking to quit it. Besides, I would get creamed in an actually competitive game of bowling.” _

_ “Well, if you ever change your mind, let me know. I’m sure the team could benefit from a player like you!” Jeff insisted. _

_ Albert laughed again. “How’s the team doing anyways? The Spare-Anormal Activities, right? They performing well this season?” _

_ Jeff shifted uncomfortably. “Oh, uh, yeah!” he said. “The name was Hal’s idea though. He was so excited to pick a name for the team and I just couldn’t say no, you know?” _

_ Albert grinned at Jeff. “I love how close you and Hal are. It’s nice to see you have such a healthy relationship in your life.”  _

_ Jeff shifted uncomfortably again for a moment and Albert frowned. He knew Hal and Jeff didn’t always see eye to eye, but they really did seem to be close. _

_ “So, should I come watch a game?” Albert asked, deciding not to pry further into Jeff’s discomfort. It didn’t feel fair when he was keeping so many secrets of his own.  _

_ “No!” Jeff said quickly, startling Albert with his force. “I mean, you probably wouldn’t enjoy it anyways, you know?” he backpedaled.  _

_ “I’m sure it would be fun,” Albert insisted. “I know we’re both busy, but I’m sure I could find the time to go to one game.” _

_ “Right, yeah, uh…” Jeff figited uncomfortably. “That’s not really a good idea. I mean…” he took a deep breath and let it out slowly.  _

_ “It’s still in the investing phase right now, you know? It’s going to start making, like, a ton of money soon, but right now it’s, you know, it’s still getting set up,” Jeff explained carefully. _

_ “Oh,” Albert said in surprise. “I thought you said last time that you were making some good money from it. I must have misheard.” _

_ Jeff shifted uncomfortably yet again. “Oh. Yeah. I have some good money invested in it right now that will, uh, eventually pay off,” he explained. “I’m making money from some, you know, some investors right now. I’m thinking of getting a farm too. To, uh, to help pay them back.” _

_ Albert thought about this for a moment. “Don’t investors usually get a share of the profits?” he asked. _

_ “Well, I, uh, I guess more loans than investors,” Jeff admitted. “But I’ll pay them back for sure, okay? As soon as my investments pay off, I’ll be rolling in the dough again and it will be like they never lent me the money at all!” _

═══════════════

Albert rolled his eyes at the spooky music coming from Hal’s doorbell. On a normal day, he would have found it funny, but today it just felt misplaced. The lingering sense of actual death did not match up well with the cheerful celebration of it.

After a few minutes of waiting, Albert rang the doorbell again. Then again a few minutes after that. “Maybe nobody’s home,” Giuseppe suggested, but Albert shook his head.

“I saw lights turn on and off since we’ve been waiting here. Someone is clearly home. It’s possible that Hal doesn’t want company, but my guess is that Heinz handled the guests before and with him dead, nobody has thought to get the door themselves.”

Giuseppe nodded thoughtfully at this. “Do you really think he’ll talk to you?” he asked. Albert shrugged. “I should hope so. I don’t know why he called Batman of all people to investigate, but we’re here offering our investigative skills for free, so he would be a fool not to jump on the chance.”

Albert impatiently rang the doorbell once more, then again a few seconds later. When still nobody answered, Albert rang the bell again and again until a very tired looking Hal finally appeared at the door. 

“What do you want?” he demanded. His cheerful, pumpkin-covered shirt did little to negate the dark circles beneath his eyes or the scruffle of beard growing up towards his once-manicured mustache. 

“We’ve met a few times before,” Albert informed Hal. “I’m a private investigator and my partner here is a lawyer. We’re here because we have some questions about the murder of Heinz DuBois.”

“What more is there to investigate?” Hal asked, running his fingers through his hair and wincing when they came back greasy. “The case has already been closed.”

“The case is never closed until Justice has been served!” Albert objected. “Right now your brother is the top suspect, but that’s all he is! You can’t give up hope yet!”

“Hope?” Hal asked. He cocked his head at Albert. “Jeff has stolen hundreds of thousands, maybe even millions from me. He betrayed my trust and plotted against me. What makes you think that I hope he’s innocent?”

Albert’s eyes widened for a second. So that was what Jeff had meant by “Hal knows everything now.” It honestly made sense in hindsight given how weirdly Jeff always acted when Albert mentioned his “investors.” And how convinced Jeff seemed that Hal would never want to talk to him again.

Albert stared sadly at Hal. It was obvious that he was suffering right now. “He loved you a lot, you know,” Albert promised him. “He still does. And I’m not saying that you need to forgive Jeff for what he did, but surely you don’t want him to suffer for something he didn’t do.”

Hal bit his lip and closed his eyes in thought. He took a few deep breaths, each one a little longer than the last. He then opened his eyes back up and nodded at Albert and Giuseppe. “Very well then. What is it you want to know?”

═══════════════

Giuseppe prided himself on his ability to keep cool under pressure. It was a trait he acquired back when he was a different person before he met Albert and one that continued to serve him well as a lawyer. Nevertheless, when the old man suddenly appeared in the hallway, Giuseppe flinched in surprise.

There was something deeply unsettling about him that Giuseppe couldn’t quite place. At first glance, there was nothing particularly unusual about the man beyond his age and impressively bushy beard and hair. His outfit was also a little out of place with his old-timey jacket and top hat, but that wasn’t it either. There was just something about him that left Giuseppe cold and clammy.

“What do you think you’re doing here?” the old man asked. He took a step forward, moving in close enough for Giuseppe to smell the sour of his breath. 

“I was just looking for the kitchen,” Giuseppe replied, squaring his shoulders and attempting to regain his unaffected appearance. “I’m a lawyer here to help with the investigation into the murder of Hienz DuBois,” he explained. “I was just looking to get some coffee to bring back to our work area.”

The old man’s eyes softened when Heinz’s name was mentioned. “Heinz was a good friend of mine,” he said sadly. “Jeff was too,” he added, his body hunching over in lament.

“Do you think Jeff did it?” Giuseppe asked, trying to keep the interest in his voice down out of respect for the man’s lost friend.

The man looked back up to stare at Giuseppe. “I always thought that Jeff and Master O’Ween were close, but apparently Jeff was stealing from us the entire time. I trusted him, you know. I thought he loved his brother, but then he betrayed him.”

Giuseppe nodded in understanding. “But do you think he killed anyone?” he asked again.

“I don’t know,” the man admitted. “He never seemed like the murdering type. He was always so friendly and fun. He was sort of down that night, but it seemed like it had something to do with his wife.”

Despite himself, Giuseppe winced. “Anyone else seem suspicious?” he asked. 

The air in the room seemed to suddenly drop a few degrees and the man’s face contorted into rage. “My children,” he growled, his voice suddenly deeper and harsher. “My children still walk free!” the man continued, his eyes bulging. “Find my children! Avenge me!”

Giuseppe stood frozen, unable to even wipe the spittle from his face. Just what on earth was this man?

Before he could compose himself enough to ask, the man’s face suddenly went slack and his eyes softened from anger back to sadness.

“I don’t know who else might have done it,” he said, the cockney accent returning to his voice. “I was there when the others were exonerated. I don’t see who else it could have been.”

Giuseppe blinked in shock and confusion. Had he completely imagined the man going crazy? “And your children?” he asked. 

“My children?” the man replied, confused. “I don’t have any. Ever since I was a young lad many years ago, my first love has always been my horses.”

Giuseppe took a deep breath to compose himself. “Right then,” he replied. “So which way to the kitchen?”

═══════════════

_ Albert was never really sure what to make of Elizabeth. Jeff always talked about her like she was some sort of goddess and he was a love-stricken puppy. It was a far cry from the desperate man who came in to change his will, but Jeff swore up and down that their relationship was fixed now. However, any doubts Albert had about Elizabeth were instantly confirmed the moment he first met her. _

_ “Are you really wearing that stupid shirt again?” she asked Jeff by way of greeting. His face fell dejectedly and he dropped his arms down from the hug he was offering. _

_ “It’s sophisticated,” Jeff protested weakly, inspecting himself. Albert had to admit that Jeff’s shirt was rather ugly, a silken thing with a loud purple and orange pattern, but Jeff had seemed perfectly happy wearing it before Elizabeth looked at him like he was covered in shit. _

_ “It’s hideous,” Elizabeth snapped back. “It would be better as kindling than it would clothing.” She then turned to Albert with a look of impatience. “You must be his lawyer, right?” _

_ “Just his friend,” Albert replied defensively. Elizabeth narrowed her eyes in suspicion. _

_ “I thought I was meeting your lawyer today,” she spoke coldly to Jeff. “That’s the only reason why I agreed to meet up for lunch with you. If I knew you were just trying to introduce me to some leach trying to steal our money, I would never have come.” _

_ “But Lizz-“ Jeff began, but was cut off before he could finish. _

_ “How many times do I have to remind you not to call me that?” Elizabeth snapped. She turned to Albert and flashed him a tight smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “He just can’t quite get that right,” she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. _

_“Jeff is my friend,” Albert insisted, annoyed. “And he didn’t lie to you. My boyfriend, Jeff’s lawyer, will be joining us shortly,” he assured Elizabeth. “My name is Albert by the way. Pleasure_ _to meet you,” he said through gritted teeth._

_ Elizabeth’s eyes widened. “Oh! Of course! My mistake. Well, it’s very nice to meet you too, Albert. I apologize for the confusion. Jeff can be a bit of an idiot sometimes, so I just assumed he had messed up again.” _

_ “Sorry sweetie,” Jeff apologized for some reason. Albert frowned, but said nothing, uncertain whether this was the right time or place to respond.  _

_ Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Giuseppe and waved him down. “Is that the lawyer?” Elizabeth asked. _

_ Albert nodded in response. “His name is Giuseppe,” he informed Elizabeth, wondering why she didn’t already know that. _

_ “Oh good,” she replied, her voice just as deadpan and dry as it was before. “I have some questions about Jeff’s will I would like some answers to.” _

═══════════════

Albert let out a sigh and sank down into the throne-like chair in the corner of the room. A second later, he sprung back to his feet with a yelp as something wrapped around his ankle. “Oh. Sorry, sorry,” Hal apologized. “I should have warned you that chair was haunted.”

“It’s what now?” Albert demanded with a horrified look at the chair. 

“Well, not really,” Hal assured him. “It’s just made to feel that way, see?” he said, sitting in the chair. A second later, a floppy, rubber tentacle flicked out and wrapped around his ankle. “Pretty spooky, right?” he asked, seeming way too excited given the situation.

“I guess?” Albert offered. He gave Hal a funny look. 

“Jeff didn’t like it,” Hal said moodily. “He always wanted me to find a more legitimate job. Thought I was just wasting my life away on all my ‘spooky shit’ as he called it.” Hal let out a huff of annoyance. “Not wasting it enough to not steal my money though,” he then muttered, sinking further into the chair.

Albert looked sadly over at Hal for a minute then returned to the pile of pictures he left on the table. He honestly wasn’t sure what he was looking for here. He had already forced Hal to recount the entire story, but it was hard to know how much was actually true given the sheer amount of supernatural that had seemingly taken place.

Hal didn’t seem like he was lying and he was honest enough about the chair, but still, was he really supposed to believe that there were actual ghosts just floating around the mansion?

“Okay,’ he said. “So Jeff straight up admitted to stealing your money, right?” Hal buried his head in his hands and nodded. “So we know that at least some of the evidence implicating Jeff is valid. The questions now remain what happens with the rest of the evidence. Why does it supposedly exonerate the others and implicate Jeff and how accurate is that really? And also what on earth does this spirit orb actually have to do with anything?”

Hal just shrugged his shoulders. “I mean, the orb released a vengeful ghost and trapped a different ghost in Ezra’s body, right? Isn’t that enough of a connection?”

Albert screwed up his nose and frowned. “I know that’s what you keep saying, but how on earth is evidence like that going to hold up in court?” he asked Hal.

Hal just shrugged again. “Everyone at the party believed it,” he offered. “Ask one of them if you don’t believe me. They’ll tell you the same thing I did.”

Albert sighed in frustration, but decided to drop the subject. Hal seemed pretty set on that story. Besides, if the other partygoers all really did believe in the supernatural, he supposed it didn’t really matter if it was true or not.

“Okay,” he muttered to himself. “So we know that Heinz was killed by a purple spherical object due to the wounds. Both the orb and Jeff’s bowling ball could have been used there. So that neither proves nor disproves Jeff’s innocence.”

He moved the picture of Hienz’s corpse aside and picked up the picture of the cars in the garage. “And from this picture, we know that anyone who had access to the cars in the garage had access to Jeff’s bowling ball. So probably Jeff, Ezra, and Elizabeth. And that’s assuming that it really was the ball at all.”

Albert frowned and ran a hand through his hair. He just didn’t see how the evidence was nearly as conclusive as everyone seemed to think it was. Sure, he could see how it could mean that Jeff was guilty, but it supported so many other theories as well.

Setting aside the photo of the garage, Albert next picked up the photo of the money by Jacob Dread’s grave. After a couple minutes of examination, he picked up Hal's balance sheets and map of the town as well.

All three items seemed far more involved in Jeff’s theft than they did in the murder case. No matter how much Albert stared at them or asked about them, all they really seemed to do was provide a motive for Jeff to want to kill Hienz.

But a motive was certainly something. Jeff had a motive and a pretty strong one at that. What reasons would the others have to kill him? Nothing really stood out to Albert and that was the biggest problem. 

Albert was startled out of his thoughts by the sound of the door slamming open. “Who’s there?” he demanded, his heart racing. Hal’s words about vengeful ghosts danced around in his head and he found it difficult to raise his eyes.

“Coffee?” Giuseppe replied, confused. He held the door open with his foot as he held up the tray of mugs. “I had a little trouble finding the kitchen, but one of the staff members was nice enough to help,” he continued, letting go of the door. It slammed shut, causing Albert to wince.

“Right. Yeah,” Albert replied, shaking his head to clear it. “Glad you’re back.” He took his mug from Giuseppe and took a long sip. His nose scrunched up in distaste at the bitterness of the drink, but the caffeine was more than welcome.

Albert went to turn back to his work, but noticed Giuseppe standing awkwardly in front of Hal. “Everything okay?” he asked.

Giuseppe rubbed his neck uncomfortably and looked around the room. “Have you ever noticed anything sorta… weird about your staff?” he asked Hal. “Like one minute he’s just some sweet old man and the next he’s…” Giuseppe trailed off uncertainty.

“Ah,” Hal said, not looking particularly concerned. “You must have spoken to Ezra. Yeah, he’s possessed by a ghost right now,” he explained. His face hardly changed from the despondent look he wore before. “It happened when the Dreads tried to trap their father’s spirit in the orb but accidentally trapped it in him instead.”

Giuseppe stared at Hal in shock, his already pale face turning even whiter. “But isn’t that horrifying?” Giuseppe asked. “How can you be so calm about it?” he demanded, his voice almost a full octave higher that it usually was.

Hal just shrugged. “The spooky stuff was really cool at first, but then things kept getting worse and the weight of it all sunk in. I guess it sort of lost its allure once it finally all sank in, you know?” he asked.

Giuseppe and Albert exchanged a look. “I’m pretty sure Giuseppe meant that it’s not good and should be remedied, not that you should be more excited about it,” Albert explained. He frowned at Hal. “I get that spooky stuff is sort of your thing, but aren’t you worried about this?”

Hal let out a sigh and leaned back in his chair, the rubber tentacle shooting back out again. “Of course I’m worried about it, but what am I supposed to do about it? The orb doesn’t come with any instructions on how to remove a spirit from a person’s body, just a warning that you might accidentally trap one there.”

Albert furrowed his brow in thought. “So you can trap and release spirits from the orb itself, but can only trap them in people? Surely there must be some way to banish the ghosts,” he insisted.

“None that I’m aware of,” Hal admitted. “That’s why the orb was needed to trap the original spirit before she brought chaos into the world,” he explained.

“And only one spirit can be trapped in the orb at the same time?” Albert asked. Hal nodded in confirmation. “The orb can only be used when there is no spirit inside of it. In order to have used it to trap Jacob’s ghost in Ezra, the girl’s ghost first needed to be set free.”

“And where is the girl now?” Albert asked, a horrifying thought dawning on him. “She's not just roving around the world right now, is she?” He looked to Hal in alarm.

“Of course not!” Hal responded indignantly. “I like spooky stuff, not spooks that are going to murder me in my sleep. I trapped her back in the orb the same night she was let loose.”

Albert let out a breath of relief. He felt a little bad for the girl that her freedom had been so short lived, but she was also highly dangerous and he really didn’t want to have to deal with that right now.

“So how come you were able to trap her back in the orb, but Jacob’s ghost got trapped in Ezra?” Giuseppe asked. He took a long sip from his own mug of coffee.

“Intention,” Hal explained. “The Dreads’ intentions were self-serving, but I just wanted to prevent everyone from being killed, so the orb respected my wishes.”

Albert closed his eyes and stood deeply in thought. “And does the orb always require pure intentions, or just when trying to use it properly?” he asked. 

“What do you mean?” Hal asked with a frown. “What other use is there?” Giuseppe turned to stare at Albert a well.

Albert opened his eyes and grabbed the orb instructions from the evidence pile. “It says right here that if you use the orb without the best intentions, you could accidentally trap the spirit in someone else’s body. It doesn’t say anything about purposefully sending a spirit into a person’s body. What does the orb do then?” he asked, a tinge excitement in his voice.

“I… I don’t know,” Hal admitted. “It just gives a warning that the spirit won’t end up in the orb in that case, but I guess if that’s your goal the entire time, it might work just fine. But I’m not sur-”

A grin split across Albert’s face. “And just like that, we have the missing motives,” he announced, cutting Hal off. “There’s still quite a few ways this could have gone down, but Jeff hardly seems to be the only likely suspect anymore. In fact, there’s someone else who might even have a stronger motive.”

Albert picked up the picture of Elizabeth’s drawing and examined it. “I think it’s time we go back to Jeff and confront him with this evidence. He didn’t want to talk before, but maybe now I’ll be able to convince him,” Albert said thoughtfully. He then turned to Hal. “Having you there would help a lot too,” he admitted.

Hal thought about this for a moment. “I have absolutely no idea what on earth you just realized that changed the case for you, but do you really think that Jeff isn’t guilty?” he asked, a slight hint of hope evident in his voice despite his anger at his brother.

“I don’t know for sure,” Albert admitted, “but I certainly know that he’s not the only one who could have done it and he’s not the one I have the strongest evidence for anymore. And this is why we need to talk to him, Hal. If he really is innocent, then I can’t let him just get locked up and put away for a crime he didn’t commit.”

Hal took a deep breath then stood up. “Okay,” he agreed. “Let’s go see my brother.”


	3. Chapter 3

_ Jeff let the cheers bask over him. A perfect game was not an easy thing to bowl, even for a professional, but he had just done so, clinching victory for his team. From the sidelines, he could see Hal and his employees excitedly cheering for him. And over to the left a little, Albert and Giuseppe were there and cheering too. And Lizzie, Lizzie was running up to him. _

_ With a laugh, Jeff grabbed his wife and spun her around. “You were wonderful out there!” she cried. “Oh, I love you so much!” she declared, pressing a kiss to his lips. _

_ “I love you too, Lizzie,” Jeff swore, kissing her back. “I love you so much. Oh Lizzie. My sweet, sweet Lizzie.” _

_ “Jeff,” Lizzie whispered back, pressing another kiss to his lips. “My dear sweet Jeff. Oh Jeff. Jeff, Jeff, Jeff. Jeff!  _ Jeff!”

__

Jeff snapped awake at the sound of his name. For a second he looked around in confusion, forgetting just where he was. And then it all came crashing back down on him. 

__

Jeff closed his eyes and took a deep breath. It really shouldn’t feel like such a surprise that it was all a dream. Since when was any of that even remotely possible?

__

It still stung though, the realization that any slight possibility it once had was gone forever now. There was no denying that it hurt to think about the bleakness of his future, but it wasn’t exactly like his present was all that much better.

__

“Jeff,” the voice prompted again, snapping Jeff out of his thoughts and fully into the moment. 

__

“What are you doing here?” he asked when he saw the pair standing outside his cell. “I told you I don’t have any money to pay for your services.”

__

“Then consider them a gift to a friend,” Albert offered. From his side, Giuseppe nodded in agreement. 

__

Jeff’s eyes widened in shock. “You don’t need to do that,” he insisted. “Honestly, it’s okay.”

__

“Is it though?” Albert asked. He gave Jeff a knowing look. “You keep saying it’s fine if you don’t have any representation or if you’re found guilty, but you haven’t outright told me that you did it.”

__

Jeff swallowed thickly and pressed his back up against the wall. “It’s true though? You know? I really am a criminal, okay?” he inisited.

__

“Because you stole from me?” a new voice asked. A second later third person rounded the corner and approached Jeff’s cell.

__

“Hal,” Jeff breathed, his voice barely audible. He shifted his body in an attempt to make it as small as possible.

__

“Hey Jeff,” Hal said. He stopped in front of the cell door and took a long look at his brother.

__

“I’m sorry,” Jeff whispered, his voice a little louder than before, but still much quieter than his usual volume. He curled himself up into a ball. “I’m so, so sorry Hal.”

__

As he apologized, Jeff forced himself to maintain eye contact. He wanted nothing more to look away, but he knew that he owed it to Hal to face him head on. It would never undo what he had done, but it was at least an offering of remorse.

__

For a minute, the pair of brothers simply stared at each other. Jeff could feel Hal’s eyes boring down into him and he braced himself for the anger he was certain would soon arrive.

__

“Why did you do it?” Hal finally asked. “You gave me a hand up and supported me on the road to success, yet you then turned around and stole that success for your own. Did you ever really care about me, or was I just another one of your investments?”

__

Each word was like a knife in Jeff’s heart. How could he have been so stupid? So selfish? What sort of a brother was he? What sort of a person was he?

__

“That’s not it-“ he began. “I mean, that’s not, it’s not… I… You… I... I’m sorry,” Jeff apologized again. “I have no excuses,” he confessed. “I can talk as long as I want about how I, you know, I never meant to take so much or, uh, how I… I always planned on paying you back, right? Or how I just… just needed one good investment before I stopped, okay? I was so, so certain I could make that investment, but I couldn’t. Only none of that actually matters, does it?”

__

Jeff finally let his eyes drop down to his knees. “I didn’t mean to hurt you, I really didn’t, but that… that doesn’t change what I did. I just kept telling myself that it would be fine, you know? You were wealthy enough that you wouldn’t… wouldn’t miss the money before I gave it back to you. And when I couldn’t give it back because I didn’t make more money, I just, like, kept digging myself deeper. And Heinz was right. I never should’ve let it get that far, but it did, okay? Hell, I never should’ve done it at all, but I did.”

__

“Why did you do it?” Hal asked. “If you were struggling, why didn’t you just come ask me? I could ha-”

__

“Because I was scared!” Jeff cried, cutting Hal off. “I was scared and ashamed and terrified that if anyone knew how badly I messed up, I would lose everything. It’s why I kept spending money even as I was losing everything, okay? It’s why I pretended like all my business ventures were successful and my bowling team were champions. I lied about everything because I couldn’t deal with the truth. I thought it would be easier this way. Clearly I was wrong.”

__

As he spoke, tears began to stream down Jeff’s face. And once he was done, he buried his head in his knees and began to sob. “I’m sorry,” he whimpered, more to himself than to Hal. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” Jeff rocked a little as he muttered. He didn’t expect Hal to forgive him, but now that the truth was out in the open, it was all he could do to keep himself in one piece. 

__

“I trusted you,” Hal finally said. Jeff miserably raised his tear-stained face to look at his brother. 

__

“I was so proud of you, Jeff. You took the money you won and you went out and found a way to live your passions. And you gave me the chance to do the same for myself. Everything I have right now, I have in part because of you. You didn’t have to do what you did for me, yet you did it without hesitation or prompting. And I felt so loved and cared for.”

__

Jeff cringed in shame. “I never, never meant to make that feeling go away, you know? I never meant to stop caring about you. I love you, Hal,” he swore to his brother.

__

“You betrayed me, Jeff,” Hal pointed out. “You hurt and betrayed and stole from me. And at the moment I’m still doing okay financially, but what would have happened had you not been caught? Would you have stopped before I was ruined as well?” he asked. His eyes shown with a glimmer of tears. “Would you have considered my well being at all?”

__

Despite the tremble in his arms and legs, Jeff forced himself to stand. He nearly stumbled when he took his first step, but he held himself upright as he made his way the few steps across the cell. 

__

Jeff stopped when he stood face to face with his brother. From up close, he could see just how badly Hal seemed to be doing. He looked so tired, so broken. Nothing at all like the cheery, Halloween loving man Jeff knew and loved.

__

“I’m sorry,” Jeff then said again. He reached out and gently wiped a tear from Hal’s cheek. “I wish I could say that I was thinking about you the entire time, but I wasn’t, okay? Obviously I wasn’t. And I don’t... I don’t know what would’ve happened if I hadn’t stopped. I’m glad I was stopped. Heinz was right to be worried. I wish I’d listened to him long ago. Then maybe…” Jeff trailed off suddenly.

__

“He wouldn’t be dead?” Hal finished for him. Jeff nodded. “You didn’t do it, did you?” Hal asked. Jeff stiffened at the question.

__

“He doesn’t have it all figured out yet, but Albert looked at the evidence,” Hal pressed on. “It wasn’t you, was it? Sure, you stole my money, but you didn’t commit the murder, did you? You’re just not that sort of person.”

__

“How do you know what sort of person I am?” Jeff asked. “I betrayed and lied to you! Why would you still have any trust in me now?” He stared at Hal bewilderedly. “How can you know the truth and still think there’s good in me?”

__

“Because you’re my brother,” Hal admitted. “You’re my brother and I love you. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still furious with you for what you did and I’ve lost a lot of trust in and respect for you since I learned the truth, but I haven’t stopped loving you and I don’t want to see you suffer for a crime you didn’t commit.”

__

Hal took a ragged breath. “And I don’t know why you’re refusing to claim innocence; if you’re trying to protect the real killer or just punish yourself, but either way it’s not worth it. Please Jeff, don’t make this mistake.”

__

As Hal made his plea, he reached in and wiped a tear from Jeff’s cheek. At the warmth of the touch, Jeff placed his hand atop of Hal’s and held it close.

__

“I don’t know what happened that day,” Jeff finally admitted. “I have a suspicion, okay, but no proof. And I don’t think I wanna know, you know? I don’t wanna be right.”

__

“And I don’t want to lose my brother,” Hal countered. “And not just because you owe me a lot of money. I’ve had a horrible week so far and the worst way it could possibly end would be to see you locked up and miserable. You have a chance to make things right if you stay out here and continue to live your life. If you want to start paying me back, then start by giving my brother back to me.”

__

Despite the bars between them, the two brothers embraced in a lopsided hug. Only their hands could properly fit through the bars, yet they held on as tight as possible. “Okay,” Jeff agreed.

__

“Really?” Hal asked, his voice perking up with excitement.

__

“Really,” Jeff agreed. “Albert and Giuseppe might still, you know, not be able to prove my innocence, but I’m willing to try. I’ll tell you everything I know and testify honestly.”

__

“Good,” Hal declared. 

__

“And then I’m gonna make things up to you, okay?” Jeff vowed. “I don’t know how yet or how long it will take, but I’m gonna make things right somehow. I swear it.”

__

Despite the tears still streaming down his cheeks, Jeff felt a warmth well up in his chest that he hadn’t felt in ages. Hal was smiling kindly at him despite everything he had done. And Jeff knew he was by no means off the hook for it, but somehow the truth had come out and he hadn’t lost everything after all.

__

No, somehow he still had friends willing to stick up for him and a brother willing to give him another chance. And he was going to make the most of it. He wasn’t sure what would happen with the trial, his finances, or even Lizzie. He wasn’t sure if he was going to walk away with any other parts of his dreams intact, but he knew now that he wasn’t actually alone. Despite all odds, there were people who cared about him and he would be damned if he didn’t give them his all.

__


	4. Chapter 4

_ Hal nearly fell off the ladder when his phone started ringing. He was in the middle of hanging Halloween lights up outside his apartment window. It was maybe a little earlier in the year than most people decorated, but he had always loved the holiday a lot.  _

_ After regaining his balance, Hal fished around in his pocket until he found the offending device. “Jeff,” he muttered after seeing who was calling. He hit the answer button and held the phone up to his ear. _

_ “Turn on your TV, Hal! Turn it on right now!” Jeff screamed. His voice was so loud that Hal had to hold the phone inches away from his head to prevent the noise from hurting. _

_ “I’m hanging my lights right now, Jeff. Just tell me what’s on TV,” Hal replied, not wanting to stop what he was doing. _

_ “Umm, okay,” Jeff replied. His voice then somehow got even louder than before. “I won Hal!” he cried. “I fucking won! Eighty million dollars, Hal! I just won eighty million dollars!” _

_ This time Hal didn’t manage to catch himself as his grip slipped off the ladder. Fortunately the bushes below broke his fall, but he was pretty sure he was going to be icing his butt for the next few days.  _

_ Hal hardly noticed the pain though. “Eighty million dollars?” He reiterated. “Are you for real, Jeff? Is this a prank?” _

_ “No!” Jeff cried, his voice still way louder than Hal thought should be humanly possible. “It’s real, Hal! I seriously won! This is gonna, like, completely change our lives. I can, can, I can go bowling every day if I want. Hell, I could buy an entire bowling alley if I want!” Jeff laughed ecstatically at the thought. _

_ “And we could both get houses,” he then realized. “Nice houses that don’t have mold growing in the bathrooms or roofs that leak. And you can decorate yours with, like, all the Halloween decorations you want. What the hell are we gonna do with eighty million dollars, Hal? How do you even spend that much money?” _

_ Hal couldn’t help but laugh out loud. What other reaction could he have? Even after taxes, this was still far more money than Hal had any idea how to process. And apparently Jeff was planning on sharing it with him.  _

_ Hal looked up at his dingy apartment and grinned. “All the Halloween decorations he wanted,” sure sounded nice. He couldn’t wait to see what that money could buy him. _

═══════════════

“Wait? So I can actually leave with you?” Jeff asked in surprise. “I thought murder suspects didn’t get bail.”

“They don’t,” Giuseppe agreed. “Then ho-“ Jeff started. 

“It’s called the Batman clause,” Giuseppe explained. “Apparently since he’s not a real cop or detective, his accusations aren’t treated as seriously. But also he’s Batman, so they can’t ignore him entirely.”

Giuseppe sent a pointed glance Hal’s way. “Okay, okay. I get it,” Hal said indignantly. “I had the ability to reach him and thought he would be a valid choice. He’s Batman for God’s sake! But if in the future I need any investigative or legal work done, I’ll be sure to turn to you and Albert. Okay?”

Giuseppe gave a grunt and nod of approval. “Far too many people relying on Batman in this world,” he muttered. “Far too many Batmen in this world,” Albert added with a snort.

Jeff let out a pearl of laughter and the lighthearted mood then stopped as something occurred to him. 

“How much did the bail cost?” he asked nervously. “I get that it’s, like, the Batman clause or whatever, but it still had to be pretty expensive, right? Are you really okay spending that on me after I, you know...”

Hal gave a little shrug of confirmation. “It’s not like they keep the bail money forever. And you’re certainly not a flight risk,” he said.

Jeff flashed Hal a dubious look, but Hal waved it away. “It’s fine, Jeff,” Hal assured him. “I’ll get the money back after the trial. I want you out of here and back in your own bed.”

“Um…” Jeff began. He shifted uncomfortably. 

“You can stay with me and Giuseppe,” Albert offered quickly. “Or Hal if that’s what you guys prefer. You don’t have to go home, Jeff.”

“Wait? Why wouldn’t Jeff want to go home?” Hal asked in confusion. Albert exchanged a silent look with Jeff. 

“Let’s discuss this more back at your place, Hal. After we’ve all had a nice meal and Jeff’s gotten a chance to shower and change into something more comfortable. Okay?”

Albert spoke to Hal, but turned to Jeff for confirmation. “Okay,” Jeff agreed. He fidgeted some more until Albert placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Okay,” he said again.

═══════════════

Despite the incredible kindness he knew he had been shown, Jeff found himself hovering on the staircase, unable to rejoin the others. Physically, he felt far more refreshed. The hot shower and and clean clothes left him feeling far more comfortable than the dirty stuff he had been wearing for the past couple of days. Yet emotionally, he still felt as drained as ever.

He knew that the others were waiting for an explanation and he knew he owed one to them, but that didn’t make it any easier. He was trying so hard to figure out a way to fix one betrayal. Did he really want to throw another one into the mix?

Closing his eyes, Jeff pictured Lizzie’s face as she heard Batman’s conclusion. “She never loved you,” Jeff thought miserably. “She never loved you and you knew it.” But that didn’t change how Jeff felt about her. 

“You could have done better and made her love you,” another voice spoke up in Jeff’s head. “She didn’t love you because you weren’t good enough for her. If you had just managed to make her happy, she would have loved you.”

Jeff felt his stomach churn. Maybe it wasn’t too late. Maybe if he protected her, he could still get Lizzie to love him. But Hal wanted him to be honest and not go to jail. And Hal said he loved him already. Plus, after everything he had already done, how could Jeff really betray Hal yet again?

Jeff felt like he was going to burst. No matter what he did, someone was going to get hurt and it was all his fault. But he knew he owed it to Hal to go down and tell the truth. Maybe his instincts were wrong and everything would be alright? Either way, Hal deserved this and so much more and Jeff was not about to let him down again.

As he descended the stairs, Jeff admired the “haunted” paintings along the walls. He used to find them so stupid, but they didn’t seem stupid anymore. These paintings were something that brought Hal joy. So what if they weren’t particularly useful or normal investments? Hal was happy and that was all that mattered.

Even if they gave Jeff the creeps. The little boy in the painting really felt like he was staring back at Jeff. Nervously, he reached out a hand to touch the painting. “Don’t do that,” Hal warned, causing Jeff to jump.

“God Hal, please tell me there aren’t more evil spirits trapped in this painting,” Jeff pleaded. He didn’t think he could take anymore real life supernatural.

“Oh no,” Hal reassured him. “It’s just bad for the painting to be touched by bare fingers. The oils on human hands can mess with the paint. This art is supernatural free, I promise.”

Jeff let out a sigh of relief then stiffened back up as realization dawned on him. “Does that mean some of your other art is not supernatural free?” he asked nervously. 

Hal’s guilty smile caused Jeff to let out a little groan. “Why am I not surprised?” he lamented. “Just please warn me before I accidentally trigger the apocalypse or something,” he pleaded.

“Deal,” Hal agreed. His smile melted into a far gentler one. “Are you feeling better?” he asked.

Jeff nodded in response. “I am,” he assured Hal. “A lot better. Thank you for doing this for me,” he said honestly. “It means more to me than I know how to say.”

Sadness flickered into Hal’s eyes, but the smile stayed on his face. “You hungry?” he asked. “Starving,” Jeff agreed. 

“Come on then. Let’s get something good in your stomach. We can talk after that,” Hal said. 

Jeff nodded gratefully. “It’s a nice painting, you know,” he admitted. “Huh?” Hal asked. “Your spooky painting there? It’s, uh, it’s cool, okay? It’s all pretty cool. I’m glad you found something you’re passionate about. It’s a pretty damn worthy use for your money, okay? I’m so sorry that I stole so much of that away from you.”

Hal nodded solemnly. “I know, Jeff,” he replied. “But let’s not worry about that right now. There will be plenty of time to worry about how you’ll pay me back later. For now let’s just worry about you, okay?”

“Okay,” Jeff agreed. The smile returned to Hal's face once more. “For the record, your bowling stuff is pretty damn cool too,” he said. “Maybe when this is all over, we can find some way to combine the two.”

“I’d like that,” Jeff admitted, a real smile finally flickering across his face. “I’d like that more than I can say. Thank you, Hal. For everything. I love you,” he said earnestly. “I love you too,” Hal agreed. 

═══════════════

As Jeff scraped the last of the sauce from his plate, he felt a wave of unease settle in his stomach. He knew it was still technically not too late to back out, but he didn’t think he could live with himself if he did.

Jeff let his eyes wander over to his brother. Now that he was back in the comfort of his home, Hal looked a little less tired and depressed, but the dark circles were still under his eyes and his facial hair remained unkempt. And most importantly, his smile was still missing.

Hal’s smile was something Jeff could always rely on. Even as his life teetered out from under him, Jeff knew he could always find a laugh and a warm smile from Hal. And maybe Jeff had resented Hal for that just a little bit sometimes, but now that the smile was gone, Jeff would give just about anything to get it back.

But hadn’t he sworn the same to himself about Lizzie? He wanted to make her happy again too and look where that led him. But Hal was here for him now. Hal saw him for everything that was wrong with him and came to get him anyways. 

And that had to count for something. Maybe a lot of somethings. Hal had come for him and Lizzie hadn’t and now he owed it to Hal to try to do what he could to fix things. He would just also try his best not to hurt anyone else in the process either.

“Okay, so I know I said earlier that I have suspicions, but I really… I really don’t know who did it, you know?” Jeff eventually said. He picked his words carefully as he spoke. “All I can tell you is what, what I did and saw that night. Okay?” he asked. His eyes darted nervously from one face to another.

“That’s fine,” Albert assured him. “You aren’t being interrogated here. Your words aren’t going to be used against you. We really just want to know what really happened. I promise,” he swore.

Jeff swallowed thickly. “Alright,” he agreed. “I guess I’ll start with, like, the money and note Heinz left for me. It’s as good a place as any to start, you know?” He spun his sunglasses around one more time before placing them on his face and squaring his shoulders. “So I had just picked up my new car,” he began.


	5. Chapter 5

_ Jeff stared at the note in horror. Whatever was he supposed to do now? Heinz couldn’t back out! He still needed the money! And he sure as hell couldn’t tell Hal the truth. Oh, what would he say if he learned how Jeff had betrayed him? Hell, what would Lizzie say if she learned the truth about his finances? How would he ever get back on his feet without more money coming in? _

_ Jeff ran his fingers through the stacks of bills. It was a decent amount there, but it wasn’t going to be enough. He needed to talk to Heinz and convince him to keep their secret. And then ask for just a little more money. Or at least find some other way to get that money. But what other ways were there? _

_ Jeff hardly noticed the smoothness of his ride as he drove home from Jacob’s grave. The whole way there, he couldn’t stop thinking about how wonderful the car felt to drive, but now he hardly noticed. “What am I gonna do?” he muttered over and over to himself.  _

_ Jeff’s mind temporarily went back to his car as he pulled it into his garage for the first time. “Careful there,” he reminded himself. The last thing he wanted was to damage it in any way. He didn’t exactly have the funds to fix it if he did. _

_ “Shit,” Jeff swore as he remembered his predicament. He looked around quickly, but didn’t see Lizzie anywhere. He really wanted to show off the car, but first he had to get that money into its  _ _ hiding place. _

_ Fifteen minutes later, the money was securely stored away, but Jeff was no closer to an answer. “You could always just ask him,” a voice in the back of his head reminded Jeff. “But then you would need to tell him the truth,” a different voice argued back. “And he would hate you for it,” both voices said in unison. Jeff let out a miserable sigh. _

_ “Hello! Earth to Jeff? God are you actually deaf or just even more idiotic than I thought?” Lizzie’s annoyed voice cut through his woes. Jeff snapped up to look at her.  _

_ “Oh!” he cried, realizing he had been spacing out. “Sorry! Sorry,” he apologized. “What can, what can I do for you my, my love?” he asked earnestly. He forced a smile on his face in an attempt to reassure his wife. “You look, like, absolutely beautiful right now,” he added when he saw what she was wearing. _

_ Lizzie gave an exaggerated roll of her eyes. “So stupid it is,” she grumbled. “I was just saying that when we go out tonight, I need you to try your best not to absolutely humiliate me. Again. Do I make myself clear? I want to go have a fun night and I don’t need you around ruining it.” She gave Jeff a stony glare. _

_ “The party!” Jeff recalled. “Oh! Right, right!” His eyes widened as he remembered who would be there that night. Now that was an idea. And if nothing else, he could at least get a chance to speak with Heinz. If he could just play his cards right, maybe he could still make this work. _

_ “Did you seriously forget?” Lizzie asked. She gave Jeff a disgusted look. “That would explain why you look so disheveled. You look like you went dumpster diving and put on the first clothes you found.” She gave her husband a pointed look.  _

_ Jeff frowned down at his clothes. “I can put on my, you know, my Gucci jacket,” he offered. l Lizzie just rolled her eyes again in response. “And I know you’ve been, like, looking forward to tonight, okay? I just… just forgot what day it was,” he assured his wife. He looked hopefully at Lizzie, but quickly dropped his eyes when he saw her anger hadn’t faded. _

_ “Oh!” he then recalled. “I have something really amazing I wanna show you!” A smile returned to Jeff’s face. “I picked it up from the mall this morning. Just wait until you see it! I’m sure you’re gonna be absolutely love it! And everyone else at the party will think that we’re, like, so cool, you know?” _

_ Lizzie rolled her eyes again. “Fine,” she agreed. “Just don’t follow me around tonight like a lost puppy. I want to have fun with  _ my _ friends and I don’t want you ruining it.” _

═══════════════

Albert nodded wordlessly along to Jeff’s story. There was a lot to unpack there and they hadn’t even gotten to the party yet. Certainly some concerning stuff mixed in there. That was clearly going to have to be addressed at some point.

“Yeah, so it uh, it turned out she didn’t like the car,” Jeff said miserably. “She said it was the dumbest thing she had ever seen and like, thought I had ruined the car. She seemed, you know, just… just really upset. I really thought she was gonna like it. Why can’t I ever do anything right?” 

He placed his head in his hands and let out a long sigh. “I thought the car was really cool,” Hal said gently. “Maybe not how I would have spent the money,” he admitted, “but still cool. Very you.”

“I’m sure it is,” Albert agreed quickly. He wouldn’t be surprised to see that the car was extremely tacky, but if Jeff liked it, that was fine by him. But right now, he really didn’t want Jeff to get started again on how the money should have been spent.

“I would love to see it at some point!” Giuseppe nodded in agreement. Jeff smiled weakly at the others. “Thanks guys. I’m… I’m glad I’m not the only one who likes it. I just wish I knew what, what to do to make Lizzie happy. It seems like, like everything I try ends up a misfire, you know?”

Jeff closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “But I guess that’s not, not really what we’re, you know, what we’re talking about now. Let me skip ahead to, like, the party. That’s probably what’s more useful to know about anyways, you know?”

═══════════════

_ The first thing Jeff did when he arrived at the party was grab a drink. He was seriously going to need some liquid courage tonight if he was going to make this work. Seeing Hal, Heinz, and the Dreads all together like this was extremely intimidating. Jeff ran a hand through his hair and let out nervous breath. “Stay calm,” he told himself. He couldn’t seem nervous or unsure or else nobody would take him seriously.  _

_ Through the intros, Jeff paid extra attention to his drink. He could feel his nerves starting to get the best of him. “Stay calm,” he told himself again.  _

_ As everyone started parting ways, Jeff stayed back to fix his hair. The Dreads appeared to be hanging back as well, so as long as he looked like he had a logical reason to be here, he should be fine. _

_ “You’re looking healthy,” he said amiably to Ezra. Jeff had always liked Ezra, so his comment wasn’t a total act, but it was also a far safer bet than starting a conversation with the Dreads directly. _

_ “Thank you,” Ezra replied. The pair slipped comfortably into a conversation about Stone Harbor. Ezra really was an easy person to talk to. No pretenses or mocking, just genuine interest and excitement. Jeff wished he could talk to more people that way. _

_ But when Forsythia interrupted to complain about her ride over, Jeff knew it was time. “Have I ever told you about my successful bowling team?” he asked. He forced a large smile on his face as he gave his sales pitch. The smile grew a bit more genuine as he talked about the game itself. _

_ For whatever financial stress Jeff was having right now, he still really loved bowling. There was just something about it. The way that each throw was a new chance to get something good. And even if you really badly messed one frame up, there was always a chance to save it the next one. And wasn’t that what spares were for? A spare was a spare no matter how bad the first throw was. _

_ But none of that mattered unless Jeff managed to find funding again. “You know, you know, you guys, you know like I, I was just thinking that if you guys wanna, wanna invest in the team maybe, I know that you guys are real serious business magnates,” he forced out. His eyes darted back and forth from one Dread to another.  _

_ “How much money are we talking about, darling?” Wellington asked. Jeff ran his fingers through his beard. “Oh you know, I probably only need like a million, you know?” He said, his hand obscuring his mouth as he said the amount.  _

_ “Just one?” Wellington asked. “Well no, I said one million,” Jeff said again, obscuring his mouth even more this time. _

_ “Just one million?” Wellington clarified again. Jeff’s heart skipped a beat as he realized that maybe Wellington was actually willing to consider this.  _

_ “Well, you know, one would be a great place to get it started. As like you know, some, some seed money,” Jeff upped the ante. If he could just somehow get the Dreads to go for this, maybe it would be okay. _

_ “Will you name the team after us? I’m really into naming rights,” Forsythia said. “Oh yeah! I think we could arrange some-something like that,” he agreed quickly. He felt a tiny bit bad offering to rename the team his brother named, but if figured Hal would prefer that to continuing to lose money. _

_ Not that Jeff was necessarily out of the woods yet. The Dreads seemed interested at the moment, but would they actually stick to their offer? They weren’t exactly the most trustworthy people and Jeff really needed that money. _

_ “Why don’t you just ask your brother?” Ezra asked. Jeff winced at the thought. And even more at Ezra’s words as he listed Hal’s achievements. Jeff knew that he shouldn’t be jealous of his brother, but sometimes he really was. It was hard when it all just came so naturally to Hal. _

_ But jealous or no, “he’s my brother and I love him with my whole heart,” Jeff assured himself just as much as he did the others. And he did love Hal. There was never any question of that. But if he didn’t fix this mess he was in, Hal wasn’t going to be the only person he lost. And he just wasn’t ready to lose anyone right now. _

═══════════════

_ Eventually Jeff found himself alone with Heinz. He wasn’t really sure what he could do to fix this. Beg? Threaten? Eventually Jeff just settled on playing dumb. Heinz wouldn’t know if he saw the note yet. Maybe if they talked things out, he could still have a shot. _

_ “How are the books going?” Jeff asked. He tried to keep his voice steady, but he felt it betray him a little.  _

_ “I can’t keep doing this,” Heinz informed Jeff. He seemed so serious and formal. It felt patronizing.  _

_ “Hey kid,” Jeff snapped instinctively. The words came out far more harshly than he intended them to. He calmed his voice back down. “What do you mean?” he asked, trying to go back to playing dumb. _

_ “You’ll find out soon,” Heinz replied. Okay. This was starting to piss Jeff off a little. The asshole didn’t even have the guts to tell him to his face.  _

_ “Nope! What do you mean I’m going to find out soon? What am I going to find out Heinzy?” Jeff demanded. The annoyance crept back into his voice and this time Jeff didn’t squash it back down _

_ “Sir, please. Allow me to do my job,” Heinz said. Like this was all Jeff’s fault somehow! Like he wasn’t getting a cut of it the entire time. It wasn’t like Jeff was the only one involved here! _

_ “Heinz, Heinz. I, I’ve been helping you do your job for a long time, haven’t I?” Jeff asked. By this point, genuine anger was starting to overtake his voice. _

_ “Sir is there a cocktail I can retrieve you or…” Heinz trailed off. He clearly intended on ending the conversation, but Jeff held on. “The cocktail I could really go for right now is your cooperation,” he snapped. He narrowed his eyes to stare Heinz down. _

_ “Now sir, the ‘your cooperation’ is a vermouth based beverage, yes?” Heinz asked. Jeff stared at the other man for a moment before relenting. “Yeah. Super dry and dirty, dirty, dirty,” he replied. If nothing else, he was at least going to end this conversation with his dignity. And two could play at Heinz’s game. _

_ “Very well sir. I’ll go get that,” Heinz replied. The tension in the room dissipated a little as a small smile flickered across his face at Jeff’s response. _

_ “Alright. Thanks Heinzypoo,” Jeff agreed. His face softened a little. It was clear that Heinz didn’t want to talk about this right now. And maybe with all of the other guests at the party, that wasn’t the worst idea. At the very least, it didn’t seem like Heinz had any intentions of telling Hal right this moment. They could talk more about this later. _

_ Noticing the changing atmosphere, Heinz’s face softened further. “When speaking to people in the house,” he began, “it’s very important that a butler do two things. Number one, speaks in an inconsistent accent” he said lightly, his accent varying wildly as he spoke. His eyes danced with humor. _

_ “Yeah, of course,” Jeff agreed easily. “Sort of trans-Atlantic, you know? Has no origin?” He let his anger completely fizzle out.  _

_ “And two,” Heinz continued, the humor once again leaving his voice as he suddenly grew serious. “To keep an eye on the orb,” he warned. He looked Jeff dead in the eyes. _

_ “Orb?” Jeff asked in confusion. “Heinzy, I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about,” he protested, but the other man was already gone. Jeff furrowed his brow in confusion. What was this orb and why did he need to keep an eye on it? Was something bad going to happen? Jeff felt uneasy to his stomach. And not just because he failed to renegotiate things with Heinz. _

_ Unfortunately for Jeff, he didn’t get much time to himself to ruminate on Heinz’s words. In some ways, Hal was both the first and the last person Jeff wanted to see right now. Usually Hal was the person Jeff turned to when he was feeling down, but right now, all he could focus on was that stupid note and his failed conversation with Heinz. _

_ “I have to congratulate you on your success with the bowling team,” Hal said. “Yeah, thanks man. I just, you know, got lucky.” Jeff felt his heart tighten. He hated lying like this, but what else could he do? He knew that Hal was truly a good person, but no matter how much Jeff loved him, there was also that darker thought in the back of his mind.  _

_ Despite Jeff’s insistence otherwise, when it came down to it, Hal reminded him of everything he hated about himself. His economic struggles, his moral failings, and his inability to regain Heniz’s help. Hal was good and warm and full of passion. Jeff didn’t want to see that disappear, but sometimes it just hurt so much. _

═══════════════

_ Jeff tried to keep the conversation light and easy. His Tesla felt like a safe subject, but that quickly fizzled out as Forsythia showed up looking for her brother. _

_ “This is my brother here,” Jeff said in a panic. He winced internally as Forsythia looked at him like a moron. “That’s a thing I can tell because you have the same last name,” she pointed out, a little patronizingly. _

_ “We also have a similar cheerful disposition, although we don’t share a love for all this nonsensical Halloween stuff,” Jeff said in an attempt to recover the conversation. He wasn’t really sure if the words came out so harsh in his desperation to convince Forsythia or his frustration with the situation. It really wasn’t fair that Hal could have such a stupid interest and still make so much.  _

_ “Well I’ve got Halloween and he’s got bowling. It’s up to you to decide,“ Hal said in defense of his interests. He waved around a stupid pair of fake severed hands as he spoke.  _

_ “I’m a wildly successful bowling mag-i-nate,” Jeff pressed on. Forsythia didn’t seem as easy to convince as Wellington and Jeff was pretty sure he wasn’t going to get any funding from the twins without the support of both. _

_ “He’s a wildly successful bowling manager,” Hal reiterated with pride. Jeff felt another pang at Hal’s support. It was pretty clear by now that the pair was competing for funding, yet Hal still supported him. Of course that only showed how much better a person he was, but what could Jeff do about that? At least if he beat Hal out for this money, Hal didn’t seem like he would be mad about it. Which was better than outright stealing, Jeff supposed. _

_ And it was maybe starting to convince Forsythia. At least until Lizzie showed up. “He is a shit bowler,” she announced as soon as she heard what they were talking about. Jeff felt his throat go dry and his words evaporate from his lips. Of all the times for Lizzie to actually want to be around him, she had to choose now.  _

_ “But no, but”, Jeff began in protest as Lizzie started to tear into him. She quickly cut him off. “I tell you Jeff, don’t talk over me, Jeff!” she snapped. “His shoes reek, the ball had gone through the wood floor I just had re-wooded a month ago, he’s foul!” she complained. _

_ “Honey, can we…” Jeff began. “You know what, he actually verbally yells at me,” Lizzie added. Jeff felt a deep pang in his heart. No he didn’t! He never raised his voice at Lizzie ever! He loved her too much for that. He just didn’t want her doing this right now. Not when so much was at stake! _

_ “He’s a shit husband,” Lizzie continued. Jeff tried to protest again, but Lizzie cut him off. “Enough with that stupid, fucking voice Jeff,” she snarled. She looked ready to bite his head off and Jeff felt himself and his confidence shrinking further. He could see Forsythia losing interest, but couldn’t think of a way to regain it.  _

_ “Is there a way to yell at someone not verbally?” Hal asked. Of all the things to question, Jeff couldn’t help but wonder why that. _

_ “You would ask that, Hal,” Lizzie mocked. She looked patronizingly at Hal and Jeff felt his stomach churn. _

_ “Hey, be nice to my brother,” Jeff pleaded. He looked desperately at Lizzie. Why did she always have to hurt him so much when all he wanted was to love her? _

_ “Be nice to my brother too,” Hal said. Jeff felt another knot in his stomach. God, why was Hal such a good person? And why was he such a shitty person in return? _

═══════════════

_ Jeff was pretty sure Lizzie’s interruption had completely sealed his fate with the Dreads. Forsythia had clearly lost total interest in him. And now it was back to just him and Hal. _

_ “Hal, don’t you think you’re wasting all your money, my money, on this spooky stuff?” he asked. The question wasn’t at all what he meant to say, but the words just came tumbling out. _

_ “Jeff, can I ask you a question,” Hal said in response. “What is money for? Why do we try to make money in this world?” He looked so earnestly at his brother. Jeff wished he could just curl up and disappear. _

_ “To umm, you know, try to win the approval of our wives?” Jeff replied meekly. “I just think that maybe if, if she saw us as more conventionally wealthy, that like maybe she’d, she’d be a little nicer to, to me,” he admitted honestly. His voice choked up as he spoke. _

_ Jeff hated saying that he wasn’t happy with Lizzie. It felt like a failing as a husband to complain about his wife. Especially when he knew how much he annoyed her. But Jeff really was so miserable around her sometimes. He knew that it was his fault though. It had to be. If he could just prove to Lizzie that he was a worthwhile husband, then surely he could win her over. _

_ He hated Hal’s earnest and loving response even more. “I don’t know what your wife doesn’t see in you,” he said. “What you’re doing with your money, that’s classy. Bowling is a classy sport. And you’re doing what makes you happy,” he added.  _

_ “I want you to be successful. More than anything else, I want you to be successful,” Hal said. Jeff felt tears well up in his eyes. _

_ “I appreciate it buddy, I really do. You know, it’s, it’s hard. I wanna be a good husband. I wanna be a good brother, and it’s just not… not… not easy, okay?” Jeff stared miserably at Hal. This was the end of the line, wasn’t it? There was nothing more he could do here. He would just have to figure out how to pick up the pieces of his life and move forward. Maybe if he agreed to stop stealing, Heinz would agree not to tell Hal. It was probably the best he could still hope for. _

_ “You love your spooky stuff,” Jeff said. There was no malice in his voice. Maybe a tiny bit of disappointment, but mainly just accept.  _

_ “This is what makes me happy,” Hal agreed. Jeff nodded. “Okay,” he relented. _

_ “You make me happy, okay?” Hal added. “The fact that we’re brothers makes me happy, okay?”  _

_ Jeff fought back his tears. “Thanks Hal,” he replied.  _

_ “I love you very much, Jeff,” Hal continued. Jeff nodded as he choked back his tears. “I love you little buddy,” he agreed. Jeff then dismissed himself to take a walk. This was all just too much to handle right now. _


	6. Chapter 6

“I’m really sorry I didn’t see the value in your interests before,” Jeff apologized to Hal. “I still don’t really, you know, like spooky stuff, but it makes you happy and that should’ve been enough. I should’ve been proud of, I mean, I guess I am proud, you know, but it should’ve been enough. I was jealous and I’m sorry.”

Hal opened his mouth to reply, but Jeff cut him off. “I... I guess maybe I just projected Lizzie’s disgust at me onto you,” he confessed. “I hated how she treated me then I turned around and did the same to you.” Jeff looked down forlornly. 

“That’s not true,” Hal argued. “It’s true you sometimes gave me grief, but you never really got mad and you certainly never got mean. Plus you were the one who funded my dreams in the first place. Besides, you didn’t pick to be with me, but Elizabeth chose to be with you. You can’t divorce a brother, but you can divorce a husband.”

“I don’t wanna divorce you,” Jeff insisted. “I love you, Hal. With all my heart, okay? And I won’t give you shit about your interests anymore, or… or steal from you, okay? I want to be the loving and supportive older brother you treat me like, you know? The loving and supportive brother you deserve.”

“You used to be,” Hal said. Jeff hung his head in shame. “You were for most of my life. The past couple of years, you messed up. You hurt me and you betrayed me and that’s never going to go away. But I think you can be that for me again. I think that you really do want to be that again. And despite it all, I still want to be your supportive and loving younger brother.”

Jeff’s eyes welled up with tears. “Besides,” Hal continued. “I sort of failed you a little bit too, didn’t I?” he admitted.

“How’d you do that?” Jeff asked. “You’ve always been a wonderful brother, Hal! You were nothing but nice to me no matter how shitty I was.”

“I should have helped more with Elizabeth,” Hal replied. He stared sadly at his brother. “I should have realized what was happening and been there to help you through it.”

From the other side of the table, Albert nodded his head. “I should have too,” he agreed. From beside him, Giuseppe gently reached out and squeezed Albert’s hand. He flashed Jeff a sympathetic look.

“What are you guys talking about?” Jeff asked. He looked at his brother and friend in bewilderment. What were they talking about? Did they know some sort of technique for winning over Lizzie they never shared with him?

“Jeff,” Hal said slowly. He looked sadly over at his brother. “I’ve got to ask. Please don’t take this the wrong way, but are you happy with Elizabeth?”

Jeff shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “What do you mean?” he asked. “Lizzie is the love of my life.”

“But are you happy with her?” Hal pressed on. 

Jeff let out a sigh. “You know I’m not,” he admitted. “I just seem to do everything wrong around her, you know? She’s just… she’s always so annoyed with me. I don’t know how to get her to love me again.”

Jeff let out a soft gasp as the arms wrapped tightly around his neck. It was so much better than the hug back in the holding cell and that had been pretty great itself. He wrapped his arms back around his brother and held on tight.

“You don’t need to earn her love, Jeff,” Hal told him. “You shouldn’t need to drive yourself crazy or change everything about yourself to earn her love. And if that’s what she’s asking of you, then she’s not worth it.”

“But she used to love me,” Jeff protested. “She used to smile at me and laugh at my jokes all the time, you know?” He buried his head against Hal’s shoulder. “I must’ve done something wrong to change that,” he insisted.

“Even if that was true, that doesn’t mean you need to hurt yourself now for her love,” Albert pointed out. “And it’s clear she hurts you. I’ve seen her do it before. I should have said something. I’m sorry I didn’t,” Albert apologized.

“I feel so stupid,” Hal admitted. “I saw how she made you unhappy. You seemed so sad and hurt that night and all I did was go in on that stupid song. How did I not realize that wasn’t going to help?”

“I didn’t realize either,” Jeff protested. “Or at least I pretended I didn’t. I knew better than anyone how mean she was, and I told myself she was still the love of my life, you know? Pretty pathetic, isn’t it?” Jeff asked, a bitter smile spreading across his face. “She wasn’t wrong about me being an idiot.”

“Not being able to leave an abusive relationship is not a sign of being pathetic or an idiot,” Albert countered. “Sometimes it’s harder to see things from the inside. And sometimes you see things, but still don’t know how to handle them. I don’t know exactly what it’s like, but…” Albert trailed off and looked meaningfully at Giuseppe. 

Giuseppe closed his eyes and took a deep breath before giving Albert a slight nod. “Thanks Giù,” Albert whispered before turning back to Jeff. 

“It doesn’t compare to the pain you dealt with or anything, but I at least know what it’s like to feel trapped and unsure what I want to do or who I want to be. And if I had been going it alone, I never would have found my way. But I wasn’t going alone and I had Giù by my side the entire time. He helped me find the person I want to be and the life I want to live.”

Albert gently took one of Jeff’s hands into his own. “You aren’t alone here either, Jeff. You’ve been dealing with so much for so long, but we’re here to help. I promise.”

Hal took Jeff’s other hand and gave it a tight squeeze. “We’ve both made mistakes along the way and we’re going to keep making them, but let’s keep making them together, okay? We’ll create some sort of spooky, bowling themed world where we can both be happy. And you can stay here with me as long as you like. We’ll figure this all out. I promise,” Hal swore.

Jeff choked on his tears. “Thanks guys,” he sobbed. “Thank you all so much.”

═══════════════

As Jeff cried into the open arms of his brother and friends, a wave of emotions violently threatened to crush him. Guilt, sorrow, fear, anger, betrayal, love, disbelief, confusion, and so many more all churned within his heart and he found he didn’t know which ones to deal with first.

Nothing felt real anymore. He was a both a criminal and a victim, both loved and hated, both filled with guilt and filled with relief. It was all too much.

“I didn’t kill him, you know?” he whimpered into Hal’s chest. “Huh?” Hal asked, not hire catching Jeff’s words.

“I didn’t kill him,” Jeff repeated, a little louder this time. “I didn’t kill him and I should’ve said something when accused. It was just that… that Batman was right about the money and then… when he said that I… I… when he…” Jeff forcefully pulled himself away from the hug.

I… I just couldn’t, you know,” he explained. He pulled his knees up to his chest and held them tight. “You just looked so miserable and broken, Hal. And Lizzie… Lizzie looked so bored, okay? I didn’t know what the point was, you know? I thought you would hate me either way and Lizzie simply didn’t care. Or maybe she...” Jeff swallowed thickly. 

“I thought she would be mad or something. Or maybe… maybe happy or… I don’t know. But she was so bored, you know? She didn’t react at all. Like she… she…”

“Like she knew,” Albert finished for Jeff. Jeff nodded silently in agreement.

“I don’t know what she was thinking then, okay, and I don’t want to accuse her of anything, but well…” Jeff trailed off again. He tugged nervously at his sleeve. “I guess even though I suspected her of betraying me, I still thought maybe taking the blame would make her love me.”

Jeff looked miserably around at the others at the table. “I figured I was already guilty of something, so why not both, you know? I just wanted to stop hurting others. I didn’t even tell Heinz that I was okay with stopping, you know? I meant to but he… he kept talking about… about music or… or something and I… I… I ended up getting annoyed at him and that’s… it’s the last thing I ever told him, okay?”

Jeff hung his head in shame. “I just wanted to stop making everyone miserable. I thought if I took the blame, I could at least make Lizzie happy. But instead I made everything worse. I’m sorry I ruined everything.”

Hal opened his mouth to reply, but a muffled swear from outside the room caused him to freeze up. “Who’s there?” Albert demanded. Giuseppe leapt to his feet, his body assuming a fighting stance. The couple looked at each other in concern.

“Show yourself,” Albert demanded when he got no reply. Giuseppe took a tentative step forward towards the door. “I know you’re out there!” Albert continued. He started to stand up himself when the door suddenly swung open.

“Hello Master O’Ween,” Ezra said, quickly ducking his head to hide his eyes. “Please pardon the intrusion. We simply…” he swallowed thickly as he tried to find his words.

“We heard that Jeff was going to be giving his side of the story today,” Bella finished for him. “I needed to know for myself what sort of excuse the man who stole my money was trying to use.”

═══════════════

Albert and Giuseppe both let out audible signs of relief when the friendly, human faces appeared on the other side of the door. Albert quickly sank back into his chair and took in the pair in front of him. Based on Jeff’s story, he assumed them to be Ezra and Bella.

He wasn’t super keen on the idea of people listening in, but Jeff barely seemed to register their presence, instead returning to staring at his knees. Hal, however, was not quite as calm.

Albert felt chills run down his spine at the fury on Hal’s face. “And you thought it was okay to just listen in on this?” Hal demanded. His voice was low and cold in a way that caused the hairs on the back of Albert’s beck to prickle. Bella stumbled backwards in fear, nearly tripping over her own feet and falling flat.

“This isn’t just some silly mystery to solve!” he continued. His eyes flashed with rage. “My brother bared his heart out and you-” Hal cut off abruptly when he saw Ezra let out a sob. “You… you should have asked us instead of just listening in,” he finished much more gently. The fire in his eyes slowly faded away.

“I’m sorry, Jeff,” Ezra apologized. “I really believed Batman’s accusations and I shouldn’t have. I should have trusted my friend.”

Jeff looked meekly up from his knees. “I betrayed that trust first. I’m sorry to both of you,” he apologized. He let his feet slip back to the ground and sat back up in his chair. “I’m gonna make the money up to Hal and I’ll make it up to you as well. And I wanna earn your trust back too.”

“It’s already back,” Ezra told him. “I’m glad you and Master O’Ween are all made up. I hated seeing you both so sad. And I’m glad you are leaving Elizabeth. She said such awful things about you.”

Bella nodded solemnly in agreement. “She did,” she admitted. “When I was with Elizabeth, she kept talking about how much she would love it if you died, Jeff. I didn’t really know what to make of it at the time, but I should have done something with that info. Or at the very least, I should have told her off for it.”

“She straight out told you she wanted me dead?” Jeff asked weakly. “I’m sorry,” Bella replied. She then let out a tired sigh.

“Look. I’m still mad about my wages, okay? I’m barely scraping by here and here you guys are fighting over amounts of money greater that I’ll earn in my lifetime. And that doesn’t mean that you deserve to suffer, but it’s also just a little hard to completely sympathize with you. And of course I’ll testify if you need me to, but, well…” 

Bella dropped her gaze to the floor. “Look. I’ll help you at the trial. I don’t want to see anyone suffer or be abused. I just don’t know if I can fully forgive you for letting me get caught in the crossfire this way.”

“That’s fine,” Jeff said earnestly. “You don’t owe me forgiveness. I’m sorry I stole from you, Bella. I didn't mean to, you know, but that’s no excuse.”

“You didn’t steal from her,” Hal objected. He let out a sigh and rubbed his hand across his face. 

“I should have paid more from the start. I was never making so little money that I couldn’t afford living wages. I guess I’m not completely blameless here either. But like Jeff, I’d like to fix things. If that’s okay with you?” he asked.

Bella nodded in agreement. “I’m going to hold you to that,” she warned. “Good,” Hal replied. “I’m holding myself to it too.”

═══════════════

“So what’s next?” Bella eventually asked. Now that everyone has settled down from her and Ezra’s interruption, they seemed to have lost their momentum. Jeff at least hadn’t gone back to holding his knees, but he still looked extremely tired.

“We go to trial,” Hal replied. “Right Albert?” he asked. Albert rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably. 

“Albert,” Hal prompted again. Albert shook his head. “It’s all hearsay,” he admitted. “The story itself isn’t enough on it’s own. But it should help me find the evidence I need. I know where to look now and what to consider. I just need to find it.”

“Okay,” Hal agreed. “Do what you need to. Just please save my brother.”

═══════════════

After a few minutes of pacing around the room in a deep thought, Albert grabbed Giuseppe’s hand and pulled him to the door. “Be back soon,” he said to the others as he shut the door behind him.

“You okay?” Giuseppe asked once they were alone together. He gave Albert a concerned once over.

Albert nodded in agreement. “Yeah. It’s a delicate operation here, but I have some thoughts on what might work. I just need to decide what’s worthwhile to try. I need to make sure I don’t just end up making things worse.”

Giuseppe shook his head. “That’s not what I meant. I know Jeff is going to be okay. I trust that you’ll come up with something. I meant are  _ you  _ okay? That was some pretty personal stuff you shared there.”

Albert blinked in surprise for a second before remembering just what he had told everyone. He then smiled up at his boyfriend. 

“Yeah. I’m okay there too,” Albert assured Giuseppe. “Thank you for letting me share that. I know that was basically the one condition you gave me when we started this. I do understand why you were worried about it, especially since there really were others listening in, but I really appreciate that you let me share anyways.”

Giuseppe just shrugged. “It’s your story to tell,” he said. “I worry about you because that’s what I do, but I trust you too. I love you Albert, you know that?” he asked. “I’m just really happy that you’re happy now. It was a long road to get here, but I wouldn’t change it for the world.”

“I wouldn’t either,” Albert agreed. He leaned in close and pressed a kiss against Giuseppe’s lips. “I love you too Giù.”

Giuseppe blushed a deep red. “So I assume you didn’t bring me in here just to make out?” he asked. 

Albert chuckled. “Unfortunately no,” he agreed. “I have a plan for how to take down Elizabeth, but I would need your help on it if we were to do it.”

“Of course-” Giuseppe started, but Albert cut him off. “It would be asking a lot of you,” he continued. “And I totally get if you-”

This time it was Giuseppe’s turn to cut Albert off. He pulled his lover in close and sank deeply into the kiss. “We’ve come this far together and I’m not about to back out now. I told you already Al, I trust you. Whatever it is you need me to do, I’m in.”


	7. Chapter 7

_ Jeff closed his eyes and took a deep sniff of his glass. “Umm…blueberry?” he guessed. He really had no idea what he was supposed to be smelling. It all just sort of smelled like sweet alcohol to him.  _

_ Jeff had never been much of a wine person. The cost to alcohol ratio had always been too high for him and he had never really bothered to acquire the taste. But now that he was a part of high society, an understanding of wine was a must.  _

_ “Strawberry?” he guessed again. He really had no idea what the wine smelled like.  _

_ “...peach, grapefruit, and nutmeg?” the woman across the table finished guessing. She lightly swished the wine around in her glass once more before taking a delicate sip. “Delicious,” she said to herself.  _

_ Jeff looked up in amazement at the woman’s abilities and felt his breath catch in his throat. To Jeff, it felt like he was looking at an angel. Her cheeks flushed lightly, most likely from wine and her rich chocolate hair flowed gracefully over her shoulder. And when she opened her eyes back up, they sparkled with joy.  _

_ She raised an enquiring eyebrow when she noticed Jeff staring. “You’re amazing at this,” Jeff said breathlessly. “I have no idea what I’m doing, but you’re incredible.” He smiled dopily. _

_ The woman let out a bright laugh. “I would hardly say that, but I appreciate the compliment. I’ve just had more practice than you I’m sure.” _

_ “Maybe,” Jeff agreed. “I was never really one for wine before, you know, but I’m trying to be more sophisticated now that I’m rich, you know?” He took another sip of his wine and winced. _

_ “Now that you’re rich?” the woman asked, intrigued. She gave Jeff a quick one over. “Did you inherit a lot of money or something?” _

_ “I won it,” Jeff explained. “Eighty million dollars. Well, I gave half of that to Hal and there were taxes, but still really rich, you know?” He grinned at the woman. “And I think I have some great business ventures in mind to keep earning even more!” _

_ The woman raised her eyebrows and pursed her lips. “That’s quite a winning there,” she said, impressed. “Quite the life-changing event.” _

_ “It sure was,” Jeff agreed. “I’m still trying to figure out all this rich person stuff though, you know?” he admitted. He made a face at his glass of wine. _

_ “I can help you,” the woman offered. She took another sniff of her wine. “I might not have the money to finance it, but I’ve got expensive taste. I’m sure with my help, you could become properly sophisticated,” she offered. _

_ “Really?” Jeff asked. He was practically vibrating with excitement. “I’ve never gotten help from such a beautiful woman before,” he added. _

_ The woman laughed again. “I see you are already quite the gentleman,” she lightly teased. She smiled at Jeff. “Stick with me the rest of the wine tour. If things go well, I think we have the start of a beautiful relationship.” _

_ Jeff let out a small yep of pain as he pinched his arm. “You’re not dreaming,” the woman assured him. “I’m just having a lot of fun right now and would like for you to join in. And also maybe to know you a little better. What do you say?” _

_ Jeff felt his face heat up. “Thank you Miss… umm, uh, what’s your name?” he asked. _

_ “Elizabeth,” she replied. “Elizabeth McKinley. It’s a pleasure to meet you, uh…” _

_ “Jeff,” Jeff replied. “Jeff O’Ween.” _

_ “Well Mr. Jeff O’Ween,” Elizabeth said. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. I hope this is not the last we see of each other.” _

_ “Same here,” Jeff agreed adamantly. “It’s a pleasure meeting you Lizzie. I can’t wait to see what you’ve got to teach me!” _

═══════════════

As soon as Elizabeth stepped foot into his office, Giuseppe motioned for her to shut the door and grab a seat. “You said you would make this worth my time?” Elizabeth asked dryly. She laid a cool eye around the room, not seeming particularly impressed with any of Giuseppe’s decor. 

“Ah yes,” Giuseppe replied. He pulled a folder from the top drawer of his desk and laid it out in front of Elizabeth. “Are you aware of what happens with your husband’s finances while he is in jail?” he asked. Elizabeth raised a single brow, a hint of intrigue showing on her face.

“I retain access to them,” she replied evenly. “Whatever money and property he still has by the time he is incarcerated will stay in my possession.”

“And what about when he dies?” Giuseppe asked. Elizabeth scrunched up her face. “Unfortunately his will isn’t something I will have the power to change,” she lamented. 

She then gave him a suspicious look. “But you know all of this,” she pointed out. “Surely Jeff’s personal lawyer wouldn’t be confused about what will happen to his finances.”

“Of course not,” Giuseppe assured her. “I just wanted to make sure we were on the same page here before we started. I wouldn’t want you to be taking my offer the wrong way.” 

“Offer?” Elizabeth asked. She raised a single brow, a hint of intrigue evident on her face. “Why exactly did you call me here tonight?” she asked.

“What if I told you I knew a way to change where Jeff’s money goes after he dies?” Giuseppe asked, opening up the folder and handing Elizabeth a piece of paper. “I’ve done it before and I’ll do it again.”

“And why are you telling this to me?” Elizabeth asked, her eyes narrowing in suspicion. “If you already know how to do it, then what do you need me for?”

“I can’t do it alone,” Giuseppe admitted. “Without your help this will never work. But without my help, you would lose your money as soon as Jeff died. We need each other,” Giuseppe insisted.

“You are aware of Jeff’s current financial situation, right?” Elizabeth asked. Giuseppe nodded his head in agreement. 

“I heard he stole money from his brother. I’m sure he’ll have to pay some amount back, but not all of his assets are going to just disappear,” Giuseppe insisted. 

“Listen,” he then said. “The only reason I took Jeff on as a client was because he’s rich. I can’t stand the man. He’s a disgusting creature and a pain to be around, but I’m not about to lose my investment in him.”

Elizabeth let out a snort of amusement. “God, he really was the worst, wasn’t he? With that stupid voice, hideous fashion sense, inaine interests, and just the most annoying personality ever. And he was such a slob! And so stupid and ugly too. Honestly, I don’t know how I put up with him half the time. Truly, the only redeeming quality about the man was his money. I thought I was going to go insane if I had to spend any more time around him,” she admitted.

“He really did us a favor by getting himself arrested, didn’t he?” Giuseppe asked with a laugh. 

“Oh hell, yes,” Elizabeth agreed. “It’s been so nice having him gone. I’m going to really love having the house all to myself.” She smiled wistfully at the thought. “I hope he goes away for life and I never have to see him again.”

“That would certainly be ideal,” Giuseppe agreed. He pulled a few more pieces of paper out of the folder and handed them to Elizabeth. “So what do you think? Can I count on your cooperation here?”

“Can I have some time to read these over?” Elizabeth asked. She gave Giuseppe a knowing look. “I’m not about to sign anything without review first. Jeff might have been stupid enough to just blindly agree to things, but I’m far smarter than he is.”

“Of course,” Giuseppe agreed. “I’ll step out into the other room and leave you to it.” He picked up the folder and made his way towards the door. “Can I interest you in anything to drink? I can grab something while I step out,” he offered.

Elizabeth gave him another look. “I told you,” she insisted. “Jeff might be dumb enough to fall for something like that, but I’m not. There’s no way you’re about to get me drunk before signing a contract. I’ll let you know when I’m ready.”

Giuseppe nodded in agreement. “Of course Ma’am. Let me know if you need anything,” he assured her. Then he opened the door.

“You!” Jeff screamed the moment the door to Giuseppe’s office swung open. “How could you do this to me?” he demanded. Tears streamed violently down his cheeks. “I came here for legal help only to find this instead? I trusted you, Giuseppe. How could you betray me like this?” 

Giuseppe and Elizabeth both turned to face Jeff. “What are you doing out of jail?” Elizabeth demanded. “Your bail was set at a quarter million dollars. Who on earth would pay to get you out?”

“Why do you hate me so much?” Jeff asked, ignoring Elizabeth’s question. “Every day I give you my all and you never seem to care. I do so much to try to make you happy, but nothing I do ever seems to work. Why can’t you see how much I love you?” 

Jeff’s voice squeaked with every word and his body shook violently. “What can I do to make you love me?” he asked brokenly.

“I’ve already told you,” Elizabeth said coldly. “You went and you changed your will on me. How can I love you if you aren’t willing to trust me with your money?”

“I’m sorry,” Jeff whimpered. “B-but you have to understand…” he began. 

“Understand what?” Elizabeth demanded. “What could you possibly understand with that infinitesimally small brain of yours?” 

“I was scared of you!” Jeff cried. “I… I was afraid that if you could just get the money, you… you wouldn’t want me around anymore, you know?” he sniffled.

Elizabeth let out a laugh. “Implying I ever wanted you around in the first place,” she mocked. “Honestly, that’s probably the first intelligent thought you’ve ever had,” she added, laughing again.

“What… what’s that supposed to mean?” Jeff demanded. Elizabeth gave him a disgusted look.

“Have you really not figured it out by now?” she asked, her voice dripping with loathing. “Or are you just so  _ blinded by love  _ that you  _ couldn’t possibly _ believe the truth?”

Jeff stared at Elizabeth with heartbreak. “I don’t know what yo-“ he started.

“Oh for fuck’s sake!” Elizabeth cried. “It was me, Jeff! I’m the one who killed Heinz! I would have thought you could have figured that out from the fact that  _ you didn’t do it _ , but I guess you’re too stupid for even that.”

Jeff stared at Elizabeth in disbelief. “But why?” he whimpered. 

“Because I hate you,” Elizabeth replied, her voice turning cold. “Because I can’t stand being around you. I was going crazy from having to be around you.”

“So you framed me for murder?” Jeff asked weakly. 

“That’s how it worked out,” Elizabeth replied. She let out a little laugh. “Honestly, you’re lucky that the Dreads got ahold of the orb before I did,” she added. “If I had my way, you wouldn’t even be alive right now!”

“But what about my will?” Jeff protested. “If I died, then you wouldn’t get anything.”

“Only if anyone knew you were dead,” Elizabeth pointed out. “I told them all you were possessed by demons. It’s not my fault they didn’t believe me. But if you started acting crazy, then surely they would have to.”

Elizabeth laughed again. “Why are you telling me this?” Jeff asked miserably.

“Because I know you’re not going to tell anyone,” Elizabeth replied. “You’re too weak to. And even if you did, who’s going to believe you? Him?” she asked, pointing at Giuseppe. “He hates you and wants your money too. You’re all alone now, Jeff. Nobody in this world loves or cares about you and nobody is coming to your defense. You can try to defend yourself all you want, but you’re going to go to jail and rot there for the rest of your life!”

For a minute, Jeff, Elizabeth, and Giuseppe all stared at each other in silence. Then the bathroom door swung open. “And that’s a wrap,” Albert said with a grin. “I’ve got to say that worked far better than even I imagined it would.”

═══════════════

As soon as Albert declared the act complete, Giuseppe ran forward. He could see Jeff wobbling on his feet and he was not about to let the other man fall. He let out a soft “oof” as Jeff collapsed into his arms, but otherwise simply held on tight.

Jeff had always been more Albert’s friend than he had been Giuseppe’s, but Giuseppe liked him well enough. He was a little odd and he didn’t always seem to know what to do with his money, but he seemed like a good person and he was always so warm and funny.

Giuseppe would be lying if he said he didn’t see a bit of Albert in him. Well, a bit of Teddy he supposed. Not that Albert wasn’t still Teddy. He still laughed at the same jokes, ate the same foods, had the same interests, and loved the same person. He just wasn’t constantly trying to be someone he wasn’t.

Which was sort of funny since he literally assumed a new identity. But Giuseppe had come to realize that Albert was far more of Teddy’s true self than Teddy ever had been. And now as he felt Jeff curl up in his chest and sob deeply into it, he wondered if Jeff wasn’t sort of the same.

“Shh…” Giuseppe comforted. “It’s okay. You don’t have to keep pretending anymore. It’s going to be alright now,” he assured the other man. “We’re all here for you.”

Giuseppe ran his fingers gently through Jeff’s hair. He was amazed his body seemed to know how to respond. That certainly wasn’t always the case, but Albert had given that to him. He was a different person because he found somewhere he belonged and someone worth fighting for. 

Giuseppe looked up at Elizabeth’s shocked and confused face. “Jeff is not alone,” he told her sternly. Elizabeth opened and closed her mouth, but no words came out.

“He wasn’t alone before, but he’s certainly not alone now,” Giuseppe continued. “He doesn’t need someone like you in his life. He wouldn’t need you even if you were a good person. And if you think I would ever betray him, then maybe you’re the stupid one.”

Albert let out a bright and startled laugh and grinned at Giuseppe. The pair exchanged a loving glance. “Giú’s right, you know,” Albert agreed. “Jeff is our friend and we’re going to look out for him. We also happen to be a detective and a lawyer, so we’re going to look out for him legally as well. Not that we really need to do much anymore,” he added with a laugh.

“What the hell are you talking about?” Elizabeth finally found the voice to demand. “What’s going on here? Who the hell are you?” She looked wildly between the lovers. 

“I told you already,” Albert replied. “We’re a detective and a lawyer. We’re also Jeff’s friends. And we just so happen to have your confession to murder recorded on video right here.”


	8. Chapter 8

In the hours that followed Lizzie’s confession, Jeff slowly became aware of his surroundings once more. He knew what he was getting into when he agreed to Albert’s plan, but quickly realized he wasn’t ready for it. Lizzie hated him, she always had. She never loved or cared about him, only his money. And he probably always knew it and just ignored the truth. Lizzie was right. He really was an idiot.

Jeff pulled his blanket tighter around his shoulders. He wasn’t really sure when the blanket had been placed there, but he was grateful for it. There was a cup of tea sitting on the table in front of him as well. He took a tentative sip. It was lukewarm at this point, but still comforting.

“How are you doing?” Hal asked gently. Jeff startled for a second at the sound of his brother’s voice, then calmed when he noticed the other man sitting beside him.

Jeff took another sip of his tea. It was some sort of peppermint flavor. He was a little surprised Hal had something like that lying around in his house, but he supposed not everything Hal owned actually had to be Halloween related. 

“Jeff?” Hal prompted him again. “Is there anything you need? Warmer tea? Something to eat? I have some cookies if you want. They’re bat shaped though,” he offered.

Jeff let out a little laugh. “And here I was thinking you might actually own some non-spooky food.” He smiled affectionately at his brother. “I think I’m okay on the cookies. Thanks for the tea though. And the blanket. And for being here. It means a lot, you know?”

Hal reached out and gently squeezed Jeff’s hand. “I haven’t listened to Albert’s recording yet, but I got the gist of what happened. I’m so sorry, Jeff. I wish things didn’t have to be this way.”

“Me too, buddy,” Jeff agreed. He squeezed Hal’s hand back. “But if they have to be this way, I’m glad I still have you.” 

“You always will,” Hal assured him.

═══════════════

Albert sipped at a cup of tea as he watched the recording over for a third time. It didn’t really get any less painful with each new viewing, and Albert was pretty sure Jeff’s miserable, broken face would haunt him until the day he died.

He owed it to Jeff not to just exonerate him, but to also implicate Elizabeth. He just couldn’t let someone so cruel and abusive stay around. And he supposed that Jeff could always get a divorce and restraining order, but it just wouldn’t feel like justice was served until Elizabeth was behind bars for her crimes.

“Why are you still subjecting yourself to that?” Giuseppe asked. He lounged his head back against his chair. “You have the confession. What more could she possibly do?”

“It’s not what she could do,” Albert explained. “I just have to be sure I’ve got it right. Batman jumped to an incorrect conclusion and look what happened. I need to make sure there are no holes in my own explanation, no missing pieces or things that don’t add up. I owe it to Jeff to do this right. Hell, I owe it to all of them.”

“True, but you’re actually good at what you do, Albert,” Giuseppe argued. “Batman is just some weirdo in a bat costume. You’re actually a real detective. And you certainly put a lot more time and effort into this than he did. I trust your thoughts completely.”

Albert smiled up at his lover. “Thanks Giù,” he replied. “I hope you’re right.”

“I am,” Giuseppe assured him. “Besides,” he then said with a mischievous grin, “you’re certainly no stranger to convoluted schemes. If anyone is going to know what happened, it’s you.”

“Hey! My convoluted scheme worked didn’t it?” Albert protested. Giuseppe laughed. “That it did, my love,” he agreed. “And that’s why I know you’ve got this.”

Albert smiled at his lover. “Okay, Giù,” he relented. “If Jeff’s ready to hear my conclusion, then I’m ready to share it.”

═══════════════

_ Elizabeth had just about had it. If she had to spend much more time with Jeff, she was sure she was going to snap. The man drove her absolutely insane. And his voice, oh god his voice. It was like nails on a chalkboard.  _

_ She supposed it hadn’t always been that way. Sure, Jeff’s most attractive feature had always been his money, but he was once wide-eyed and wonderstruck, uncertain of how to act in a high class world and willing to learn. The problem was just that he  _ never  _ learned. No matter how much time passed, Jeff never seemed to get any better at anything and Elizabeth’s patience wore thin. _

_ And now here she was, married to a bumbling fool who dressed himself in garish clothes, wasted his money on the dumbest shit, and constantly took up passions that he was nothing short of horrific at. And that was before she even got into the  _ pet names.  _ Elizabeth shuddered at the thought. _

_ No. There was no way Elizabeth was going to take this any longer. Things were already overly complicated by Jeff’s sudden change in his will. If she didn’t act soon, perhaps he would make things even harder for her yet again. _

_ But fortunately, Elizabeth had a plan. It was a rather unusual one to be sure, but that was exactly what Elizabeth needed. The supernatural wasn’t something widely enough accepted as fact to be suspicious, but Elizabeth had seen it before. She felt it every time she used her cards. And she knew that Hal had the perfect tool at his disposal.  _

_ Not to mention Jeff’s own hatred for the supernatural and obvious inferiority to his brother. What better way to take the man down than by using the tools that would hurt the most? _

═══════════════

_ As loathe as she was to do so, when she and Jeff arrived at the party, Elizabeth sent him on to go ahead without her. “I just need to fix my makeup,” she assured him. “I’ll be along shortly.” _

_ “Oh, okay Lizzie,” Jeff replied. He seemed surprisingly okay with the suggestion, but Elizabeth was not going to question it. Jeff had seemed weirdly fidgety all day, and Elizabeth was not about to risk having to hear about Jeff’s feelings if she dared ask. _

_ Once Jeff was out of sight, Elizabeth made her way to the trunk. She scrunched her nose up in disgust when she saw how Jeff had ruined the car with his bowling alley. “He’s such a fucking moron,” she grumbled in annoyance. _

_ She picked up Jeff’s bowling ball and tried it out for weight. “Perfect,” she said to herself. She pulled a gift bag out from the back of the car and stuffed the ball inside. _

_ “Perfect,” she said again. “This is going to work,” she assured herself. “Tonight you’re going to be free.” _

═══════════════

_ After dropping her “gift” off in the coat room, Elizabeth spent the first hour carefully planting the seed. “ _ Jeff was verbally abusive,” “Jeff was disgusting,” “Jeff was possessed by a demon. _ ” Elizabeth meticulously went around reminding people just how nightmarish and  _ wrong  _ the man was to live with.  _

_ Then she planted the seed that the world would be better off with Jeff dead. Which was probably objectively true, but wasn’t enough on its own to solve her problems. It would certainly help though. After all, surely an empty vessel would be more habitable than one polluted with, well, everything that made Jeff Jeff. _

_ Once her seeds were planted, Elizabeth slipped away from the crowds. Fortunately there was nobody guarding the coat room and she easily made her way to the back where the “present” was stowed.  _

_ “Oof,” she said softly as she picked up the bag. From a glance, she simply looked like she was carrying around a housewarming gift. And Elizabeth was pretty sure that the commotion soon to come would wipe any memories of such a mundane sight from everyone’s minds. _

_ After assuring the dining room was empty, Elizabeth carefully placed the bag under the table. The tablecloth did an excellent job of hiding it and she felt certain that nobody would go poking around underneath the food. Well, maybe Jeff would be dumb enough to do it, but she doubted he would be smart enough to think anything of the bag. The man really was pathetic. _

_ The last thing she did was tie a clear piece of string around the light switch. In the already dimly lit room, the string was difficult for even her to see. This was going to work. She could feel it. _

═══════════════

_ Elizabeth moved along with the rest as she held her glass up for the toast. She forced her face to stay neutral, feeling it too risky to betray any of her emotions. She waited until everyone leaned in for a sip, then she stepped on the string and gave a tug. _

_ The string gave way as the room descended into darkness and she quickly snatched it up and hit it in her pocket. Crawling on hands and knees, she then made her way to the buffet table and retrieved her weapon. _

_ She waited until Heinz received the instructions to turn the lights back on, then she made her move. The second Heinz hit the ground, Elizabeth rushed to hide the ball away again. And then she saw it. _

_ Elizabeth felt her blood turn to ice in her veins. The creature rising up before her was truly terrifying. Yet despite her fear, Elizabeth felt a rush of excitement. Her predator was here now and she only needed to lead it to the prey. _

_ Then just like that, the girl was gone and the lights were back on. For a few moments, Elizabeth pretended to be concerned for Heinz, but then she noticed something far worse. _

_ “Where is it?” she thought desperately. Why couldn’t she find the orb anywhere? It shouldn’t have rolled off that far! What on earth happened to it? _

_ “I’m going to make a call to an investigator,” Hal announced. Lizzie felt a jolt of fear far greater than the one caused by the girl. Without that orb, what on earth was she going to do? Even if she convinced the investigator that Heinz’s death was just an accident, it would probably be too suspicious to try anything against Jeff again. Unless… _

_ “That could work,” Lizzie thought to herself. She had already planted the idea in everyone’s heads that Jeff was a horrible person. How hard would it really be to convince them that he was actually a murderer?  _

_ Lizzie forced her face to stay neutral, but inside she was grinning. “Yeah,” she thought to herself. “That will work just fine.” _

═══════════════

“And there you have it,” Albert said to the group. He didn’t bother with all the theatrics usually associated with a “and this is how it happened” speech. Those were there just to make the detective feel good and nothing about Albert’s conclusion made him feel good.

Albert sank down in a chair and let out a sigh. “Do you have any questions?” he asked. He knew it was probably a lot for everyone to handle, but Giuseppe was right. Albert was almost completely certain this was how it all went down. It was just the only explanation he found that both supported and didn’t ignore all of the evidence, it was certainly a lot more convincing than Batman’s conclusion.

“So she didn’t plan from the start on framing Jeff?” Bella asked after a moment of silence.

“No,” Albert replied. “She wanted to possess him first. She wanted to show the world that he was the monster she kept claiming he was, but needed to actually turn him into a monster first to do that.”

“But why try to kill him?” Ezra asked. “Apparently I’m possessed and I’m still alive. Why would she want him dead like that?” He stared at Jeff in distress. “How could she be so incredibly cruel?”

“You’re exactly why she wanted him dead first,” Hal realized. “You’re still mostly you and she didn’t want any Jeff left. But she didn’t know if she would have enough time to kill Heinz, kill Jeff, then poses Jeff all at once, so she tried to enlist the help of others. Fortunately nobody took her up on her offer.”

“Exactly,” Albert confirmed. “And when she lost sight of the orb, her plans changed into what we saw play out. But from the very start, her goal was always to get Jeff’s money all to herself snd remove Jeff from the picture.”

“Well, then it sucks for her I don’t actually have any money,” Jeff said bitterly. He let out a snort. “Imagine if she got away with all this only for Hal to sue me for every penny.” Jeff let out another snort. “Would have served her right,” he grumbled.

“It would have,” Hal agreed, “but that’s not how it’s going to happen. She’s not getting a penny of your, or my, money and you’re not going off to jail.”

“No,” Jeff agreed thoughtfully, “it isn’t how it’s going to happen. Because I have all of you here with me to look after me. And because I’m gonna get a divorce before she can try again. I’m done trying to earn her affections. I’m done with her. I mean, she’s still the first woman I ever loved, you know, but I’m gonna do my best to move on. I’m ready,” he declared.

“You are,” Hal agreed wholeheartedly. “Soon enough you’re going to be a free man. In more ways than one. And we’ll all be right here by your side the entire time.”


	9. Epilogue

“So remind me again why Batman never took in the Dreads,” Giuseppe said as he sat down beside Albert.

“Something, something, something, circumstantial evidence or whatever,” Albert replied. “He wasn’t super clear on it.”

Giuseppe let out a snort at that. “Yeah, I get the irony too,” Albert chuckled. “But we’re going to actually get proof,” he assured Giuseppe. 

“I know,” Giuseppe replied. “I have the best partner I could ask for in the entire legal business. Best fiancé too,” he added with a grin. He and Albert leaned in for a kiss. “We’ll free Ezra from his possession for sure. Then we’ll see what we can do about the girl.”

“We’re becoming regular paranormal investigators,” Albert mused. “And I can’t say I really mind.”

“Certainly keeps us busy,” Giuseppe agreed. “And this time we’re even getting paid for it!” The pair both laughed at that.

“Bowling’s at 8 tonight, right?” Giuseppe asked. Albert nodded in agreement. “Think I’ll beat my score from last session?” he asked with an eyebrow wiggle towards Albert.

“I don’t know,” Albert replied. “Ten is a pretty hard score to beat,” he teased.

“Oh shut up,” Giuseppe grumbled before letting out a snort of laughter. “I’m still learning,” he complained.

“And you’re doing a wonderful job,” Albert assured him. “I know Jeff loves having you here with us. And I certainly love it too.” He squeezed his fiancé’s hand and smiled. 

═══════════════

Jeff and Albert’s once-monthly bowling sessions had turned into Jeff, Albert, and Giuseppe bi-weekly bowling sessions. And Albert had to admit that he couldn’t be happier.

Jeff no longer showed up each session with a new accessory, but instead with a new story. He told Albert and Giuseppe all about his bowling games with his other friends. And about the new Haunted Hayride he and Hal were building on the farm. And the nice woman he kept bumping into at the bowling alley, but wasn’t quite ready to try pursuing. And the way the sunlight came in just right through his new apartment windows. And so, so much more. But no matter the topic, Jeff seemed to always be smiling.

And Albert and Giuseppe shared their stories right back. Many were stories the pair had once seen as taboo, but they had gone to battle beside Jeff and a true friendship was forged. 

And Albert couldn’t say that he had ever pictured his life looking like this one day, but he couldn’t imagine a world where he’d be happier without it. And every time he heard Jeff’s bright laughter bubble forth, Albert was certain Jeff felt the same way too. 

It was a sort of happiness someone like Elizabeth would never understand. Something that couldn’t be bought with money, but rather built with love. And Albert was just happy he and Jeff had both found themselves surrounded in it.


End file.
